


watching through my fingers

by frootwyn



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV), wayhaught - Fandom
Genre: Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, F/F, High School AU, Wayhaught - Freeform, i wrote this during a depressive episode, nicole haught - Freeform, not a slow burn, they are very young, waverly earp - Freeform, wynonna earp - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-24
Updated: 2019-01-21
Packaged: 2019-08-28 17:59:29
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 22,493
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16728198
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/frootwyn/pseuds/frootwyn
Summary: Waverly Earp and Nicole Haught are sworn enemies until a school trip turns everything upside down.





	1. Chapter 1

_ Cacoethes: the irresistible urge to do something inadvisable. _

Nicole Haught, now a freshman at Purgatory Public, had perfected the the coat of black nail polish over her nails as she prepared for the first day of school. She woke up early to make sure they didn’t chip in her sleep and so she could actually put effort into her appearance, unlike any other day. She wasn’t really worried for the first day since she’d been at the school since she was in seventh grade, and the grades the school held were from sixth to twelfth. She had friends there that she kept close, but she never let them know too much about her. That wasn’t safe, even if Nicole was anything but safe most of the time. She liked to live life to the fullest, to say the least. She didn’t let herself wonder what the reaction would be to something when she could do that thing and see the reaction for herself. 

There was only one thing she just wasn’t willing to see the reaction to: coming out. 

She figured it wouldn’t be any different. The few people who didn’t really like her would call her all the words in the book, as if they knew what she really was. 

She wasn’t going to let that ruin her first day, though. It was the first day of high school; she had to make it special. In a few years she knew it wouldn’t be as big as she felt it was now, but the future was something that Nicole didn’t like to think about. She lived in the moment and dealt with consequences later. 

Waverly Earp was also entering her first day of high school, having been at Purgatory Public since sixth grade. School didn’t worry her in the slightest. She was relatively popular and well-liked, and from what she knew, nobody had anything against the perfect Waverly Earp. She was also planning to get right into the high school cheer team, which she didn’t have a worry about either. Things went smoothly for her. All things except this one  _ thing _ in particular. A thing that she couldn’t even convince herself was entirely human. 

Now, Waverly Earp didn’t have a mean bone in her body. She’d never be mean to someone she disliked, but the fire that boiled inside her when she saw that  _ thing _ was unlike any fire she’d ever felt before. 

 

-

 

Nicole was kicked back against her locker, her new nose ring catching the glimpses of quite a few people, not that it surprised them. She’d pierced it herself just last week, going for a slightly improved look from last year. People liked Nicole for the most part. She could sometimes be the class clown, and people thought she was different, but in a cool way. She had the guts to say a lot of things that people were thinking. The difference between her and Waverly’s popularity, though, was that Nicole did have people who disliked her. Many. One in particular who she just couldn’t figure out why. She’d pushed people’s buttons, of course, but this one she doesn’t recall ever pushing. 

“Lookin’ good, Red,” Jeremy Chetri, a loveable nerd, waved at Nicole as he walked down the hallway. 

Nicole smiled slyly and waved back with a single flick of her wrist before diverting her attention back to her phone. 

Waverly rolled her eyes, “Yeah, looking great.” She sarcastically mumbled to herself, pacing forward down the hallway.

“Thanks, Earp.” Nicole chuckled, a stupid smile on her face that Waverly hated. 

“I wasn’t talking to you.” Waverly stood still in the hallway, turning to face Nicole. She clutched her books to her chest and stood straight up, not allowing a single fault in her posture. 

Nicole looked around, shrugging, “I don’t see anyone here looking as great as me.” She teased, Waverly boiling at the sight of that stupid charming grin with that stupid dimple. 

Waverly scoffed, annoyed. “You keep telling yourself that. Have you seen me?” She mocked Nicole’s cockiness, whipping her head around as she turned to walk away. Her steps became angrier as she made her way to her homeroom, praying that Nicole wasn’t in the same one. With her last name starting with ‘E’ and Nicole’s with ‘H’, there was a chance they could be sat next to each other, and that was the last thing Waverly needed on her first day of high school. The absolute last. 

With her luck, of course, Nicole was sat right behind her, having walked in late, of course. She could hear her laughing and cutting up with other people in the class, telling a story of how she pierced her own nose with an ice cube and a safety pin. So unsafe. So unsanitary. 

“Did your mom care?” Someone asked Nicole, who laughed in reply.

“By the time she found out, it was too late too care.” Nicole rolled her eyes, “I’ve given up on trying to be her perfect daughter. My sister can do that job for me.” She turned in her seat to face the front once the teacher started talking to them.

Waverly huffed. Nicole was so… Nicole. There wasn’t a word in any language that could possibly amount to her stupid arrogance and horrible attitude. She had no regard for anyone but herself, and Waverly was tired of hearing all about her and her stupid stories for the past two years. Nonstop. Even over the summer, Waverly still somehow found out about Nicole’s life and what she was up to. Sometimes, she even had the absolute disadvantage of seeing her in public, then having to deal with whatever snarky greeting Nicole thought of. 

_ “Hey Angelpants, sunburnt or angry?” _

_ “Is that your belt or are you just happy to see me?” _

_ “Hey band tee, am I finally growing on you?” _

Ridiculous. She felt like she had steam coming out of her ears when she thought about the fact that she’d have to deal with this for four more years. Then, with her enormous amount of luck, they’d probably be roommates at the same college. 

“Don’t forget, you guys, about the school trip to New York. It’s this November, and you should be signed up and everything by next month. All the information is in the forms that are being passed out now.”

New York, New York. Waverly had never been, but she was pretty ecstatic to go on the trip. Both her sisters had gone and they loved it, so she was excited to have the same experience. She’d room with her best friend, Chrissy, and they would stay up late, and take photos, and become even more close as best friends than before. Waverly could see it already. She’d been dreaming of the freshman trip since she got to this school, always finding it cool that you could go on such an extravagant trip with the grade. 

“Hey Nicole,” Rosita, Nicole’s closest friend, turned around from her seat a few desks up with a big smile on her face, “Roomies?”

Nicole nodded with a wide, dimpled grin, “Totally.”

Waverly could only imagine the insane amount of trouble they’d get into. Correction: that  _ Nicole _ would get them into. Waverly couldn’t understand how anyone could be friends with such a troublemaker.

Once homeroom ended, Waverly stood up and slung her bag over her shoulder, hoping to pace out the classroom before she had the time to hear Nicole’s voice. Instead of her voice, though, she felt a tap on her shoulder. She sighed and spun around. 

“You dropped the stick up your butt- oh, I meant pencil. Sorry.” Nicole handed Waverly a pink mechanical pencil that had slipped out of her backpack. She smirked a bit as she waited for Waverly to take it from her, actually kind of admiring the angry look in her eyes. 

“You sure you didn’t pull this out your own?” Waverly snatched it back, spinning around to walk out again. 

“Well, you just took it back,” Nicole caught up to walk beside Waverly, “Don’t worry. If I were you, I’d also have a thing for my butt.” She turned down another hallway, walking to her next class and leaving Waverly to boil in her frustration. 

 

-

 

“Waves,” Chrissy Nedley waved from her spot at their table in the cafeteria, grabbing Waverly’s attention. They’d had the same table for all their years here together, and Waverly was relieved to have at least a little bit of consistency every year. She smiled and sat down next to her friends, soaking in the break between classes. 

“I am exhausted,” Waverly sighed, placing her lunch kit on the table and pulling out her sandwich. “Not even five minutes into the school day and guess who I see?”

Nearly the entire table mumbled something along the lines of ‘Nicole’ or ‘Haught,’ being very familiar with the rivalry between Waverly and the redhead. 

“Nicole Haught!” Waverly rolled her eyes, “I just want one good year. Just one. Is that too much to ask?”

Chrissy had her ear talked off about Nicole the past few years, so she learned to tune it out. She didn’t exactly know why their rivalry existed, but she wouldn’t dare ask. If she asked, they would be here until they die. “So, about that New York trip,” Chrissy smiled and looked at Waverly, “Roomies?”

“Duh!” Waverly smiled wide, having planned out the trip with Chrissy ever since sixth grade. They had set out their entire hotel room experience, not letting a minute of it go to waste. This was going to be their first time going somewhere without their parents; they were growing up now.

Nicole took a seat at the table she sat at every year, the group sitting there consisting of Rosita and Jeremy. She pulled out a granola bar and took a bite, “So far, so good.” She said.

“So far, so  _ not!” _ Jeremy replied stressfully, already panicking about the amount of work he already had, “I have three pre-tests to take tomorrow, and I know they don’t count, but they do for me. I cannot make the teacher think I’m stupid. I’m not stupid, right? I’m really, really smart.” He looked at textbook set on the table and shook his head, “Nope. Nope, this is too much. I am not smart enough.”

“Calm down, Jer-bear,” Rosita reached over shut the textbook, “You’ve got nothing to worry about, smartie-pants.”

“I second that,” Nicole gave Jeremy a friendly pat on the shoulder, “Anyway, the New York trip. Are you two going?” 

Jeremy laughed, “Yeah, in a different dimension. My parents do not trust me enough.” 

“But you’ve never done anything wrong in your whole life.” Rosita scoffed, “How can they not trust you?”

“Ask them.” Jeremy shrugged.

Rosita looked at Nicole, “I should be going.”

“Roommates?” Nicole grinned, already thinking of all the mischief they could get up to if they were left in a hotel room by themselves. They could stay up late, prank call the other rooms, sneak out to get snacks, play pranks on anyone’s room they could get into, the list was endless. It was the perfect amount of freedom.

“Of course,” Rosita fist-bumped her, already sensing what Nicole had in mind. Rosita wasn’t as adventurous as Nicole, but she did participate in a prank here and there. She didn’t get any detentions, though. She knew her limits. Nicole also knew her limits, but she’d purposely go the extra mile just for the satisfaction. 

Nicole smiled, “Perfect.” Everything fell right into place. 

“You two better FaceTime me,” Jeremy frowned, wishing he could also accompany his friends on the trip. 

“We will,” Rosita also fist bumped him, “For sure.”

“Someone has to keep Nicole in line,” Jeremy said, “And if I have to do that over the phone, I will.”

“Hey,” Nicole playfully hit his arm, “I’ll be very well behaved.”

There was a moment of silence before the three of them burst into laughter, the idea of Nicole not causing trouble sounding like blasphemy at this point. Nicole acted out, and Jeremy and Rosita kept her at most in the lines as they could. It was how it all worked, and it’s how it always would. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Listen, Nicole. You do great in my class, and I really respect you as a student, but there has to be consequences.”
> 
> “Yeah, yeah, I’ve heard that before. It was just a-”
> 
> “A little prank?” I know. And you just want your detention, but we’re going to try something different. I’m not going to give you a detention.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw: homophobic slur

Three months of little pranks later, Nicole had thought of another one. A teacher who she’d messed with for months had already given her two detentions, though Nicole honestly thought she’d receive more. She popped a piece of gum in her mouth about thirty minutes before she’d walk into her next class with Ms. Lucado, the teacher who had it out for her and who she had it out for in return. Nicole had chewed gum in Lucado’s class on more than one occasion, so this was just going to add to her innocent little prank. At this point, the students anticipated what Nicole would do next, which only fueled her more. 

She rushed to the classroom as the bell rang so she could arrive there before Lucado did. A few students were already at their desks. She worked quick, speedily ripping a small piece of paper and grabbing a piece of tape. She picked up the teacher’s mouse for her computer and flipped it over, taping the small piece of paper over the bottom so that it wouldn’t work anymore. The students who were already in the class started snickering, and one of them even high fived her as she walked to her seat and sat down. 

It wasn’t until the end of class when Lucado finally needed to use her computer. She moved the mouse all over, frustrated as to why it suddenly wasn’t working when it was working fine just yesterday. She huffed, unplugged it and plugged it back in, hit it against the desk, all while Nicole sat smirking in the back of the class. Once it finally hit her, the teacher turned the mouse over and saw the piece of paper taped under the mouse. She looked directly at Nicole.

Before she could reprimand her, the bell rang, and Nicole slipped right through the crowd and out the classroom, running down the hall laughing before the teacher could catch her. 

 

-

 

Nicole sat in an empty classroom, slouched at a desk while the teacher who also acted as the disciplinarian, Ms. Kate, stood in front of her. “Now, Nicole,” She pulled up a chair and sat across from Nicole at the desk, “I think you know why you’re here.”

Nicole shrugged, “Meh.”

Ms. Kate sighed, “Listen, Nicole. You do great in my class, and I really respect you as a student, but there has to be consequences.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’ve heard that before.” Nicole sat with her arms folded, just wanting to accept her detention and leave, “It was just a-”

“A little prank?” Ms. Kate finished, “I know. And you just want your detention, but we’re going to try something different. I’m not going to give you a detention.”

Nicole laughed, “Really?” She thought it would be quite unintelligent of them to not give her a detention. Was her consequence going to be no consequences at all? Because that surely wouldn’t make a difference.

“Really,” The teacher nodded, “But there is something else in the place of that detention.”

Nicole raised an eyebrow, hoping that she wouldn’t just prefer a detention. But of course, she would.

 

-

 

Waverly walked up to the doorway of the empty classroom and knocked on the side of it, “Ms. Kate? You needed me?” She asked politely, always being a teacher’s pet and star student. 

“Waverly! Yes, you’re just the person I was looking for,” Ms. Kate directed to the seat on the other side of her desk, “Come sit, please.”

Waverly nodded and walked over, setting her bag on the floor before taking a seat on the chair she was told to sit in. She sat straight up with bright eyes and a smile, always being excited to help a teacher if they needed. It made her feel important that teachers would come to her if they needed assistance.

“You like helping people, right?” The teacher asked.

Waverly nodded happily, “Of course.”

“Well, I need your help with a student. I think you could be a really good influence on them, but you’d have to give up Chrissy as your roommate. However, I’d give you extra credit in my class, and I’ll give you some special privileges-”

“Oh, no worries,” Waverly shook her head, “You don’t have to go out your way to do that.”

“I’d have you room with this person instead. Maybe be their friend, keep them in line on the trip, and things like that.”

“Sure,” Waverly smiled, “I like making new friends.”

“And that’s why I figured you’d be perfect for the job. You’d be rooming with Nicole Haught; do you know her?”

The smile on Waverly’s face faulted for a split second before she forced it to stay plastered on her face. She felt all her muscles tighten, and everything suddenly come crashing down. Of all the good she’d done, she accepted in this moment that she would never get any in return. 

She squeezed her hands together and thought of all the things she’d rather do, all the people she’d rather room with, before she’d ever room with Nicole Haught. But, with her luck, of course, she’d already said yes to the job and told the teacher she didn’t want anything back in return. 

But her luck couldn’t be  _ this _ bad. This had to be a dream. She’d wake up any second now. C’mon, Waverly,  _ wake up. _

But she wasn’t dreaming. She even pinched her leg to check. 

“Yeah,” Waverly said through gritted teeth and the most forced smile she’d ever worn in her life, “Yeah, I know her.”

“I’m sorry you’ll have to give up your room with Chrissy, but I think this could be really good for Nicole, and hey, you can still have fun. And you can still hang out with Chrissy when you’re not in your hotel rooms. Nicole would be your buddy for the buddy system rules, though.”

Waverly nodded, “Yep, no, that’s perfectly fine. Can’t wait.”

“That’s my girl,” Ms. Kate smiled, “Thank you so much, Waverly. Truly.”

Waverly grabbed her backpack and stood up, “No problem at all.”

 

-

 

“What?” Nicole had to laugh. This couldn’t be happening to her. If anything, this would make her conduct  _ worse. _ Waverly Earp is the most uptight girl in the world; Nicole couldn’t help but to push all her buttons. She had to. Waverly was going to make this trip hell for her or she was going to make this trip hell for Waverly. Either way, it was a lose-lose situation that she just couldn’t bare.

“Listen, I know Waverly is your polar opposite, but I think you could be good for each other.” 

“Yeah,” Nicole grabbed her bag and stood up, “Whatever.”

“Nicole,” Ms. Kate called as the student started walking out the classroom, “Nicole, come on.”

Nicole shook her head, “Nope.” She opened the door and walked right out, letting it shut loudly behind her. She walked back to lunch, but instead of going to the cafeteria she walked into the bathroom, pushing past a few girls fixing their hair and locking herself in a stall. She sat atop the seat and brought her knees to her chest, hands pulling at her hair. She didn’t know if she was angry or sad or a horrible, terrifying mixture of both.

She knew she brought this situation on herself, but she just couldn’t help herself sometimes. She knew she’d always be a disappointment, and she embraced it. But now she’s such a disappointment that she had to be paired with Waverly Earp because teachers couldn’t even expect her to act right on a school trip. No one had any faith in her. And she concluded that she didn’t have any faith in herself either. 

Waverly walked into the bathroom with Chrissy, Nicole recognized their voices straight away and made herself as quiet as possible, with all her might holding back the tears that were falling.

“Fun story, Chrissy,” Waverly huffed, sitting on the counter where the sinks were. She threw her bag to the ground, watching as Chrissy started fixing her hair in the mirror. “So, we can’t be roommates anymore.” She was completely numb to her own anger at this point, but she knew it would all come crashing down later. 

Chrissy peeled her eyes away from her own reflection and glared down at Waverly, “What? Why? We’ve been planning this for years!” 

Waverly huffed, frustrated tears stinging at her eyes, “It sucks to be the teacher’s pet, doesn’t it?” She managed a light laugh laced with annoyance, crossing her arms tightly, “Well, Nicole Haught decided she couldn’t act right, and I’m stuck rooming with her to make sure she stays in line. Of  _ all _ people, Chrissy. God, I think I’d rather room with Champ. Fricken Champ Hardy.” She looked up to stop the tears from spilling. 

Nicole let a few tears spill in the stall she was locked in. She took a sleeve of her jacket and bit down on it to stop herself from releasing a sob. She clenched her eyes shut and held her breath. She was usually able to let words slip right past her. Words that were spat in her face, at least. These were the worst kinds of words, though. Words she wasn’t meant to hear. Words that they would never say to her face because they were awful, stinging daggers.

“Nicole Haught?” Chrissy rolled her eyes, “Ugh. She’s awful.”

Nicole bit harder into her jacket sleeve. Maybe she really was.

“Whatever,” Waverly shook her head, “I just wanted to tell you. We can still hang out and stuff, but Nicole and I are buddies for the whole thing.” 

“I’d be careful around her.” Chrissy went back to fixing her hair in the mirror, now feeling angry towards both Waverly and Nicole. She kicked Waverly’s bag to the side so she could stand closer to the mirror.

Waverly furrowed her eyebrows, “Hey, I know she misbehaves a lot, but I don’t think she’d kill me or anything.” She scoffed, now having a sudden urge to stand up for Nicole since Chrissy was now mad at her. If she had to pick a side in this situation, maybe it would end up being Nicole’s for some reason that she just couldn’t place. She may have hated the redhead, but she shouldn’t be accused of having the motive to kill someone. 

Nicole listened a bit closer. Waverly was right; she’d never, ever kill someone. She didn’t think anyone deserved that despite what people may think about her tough exterior. 

“No, I don’t think she’d kill you,” Chrissy got closer to Waverly, lowering her voice.

Nicole leaned closer to the wall, letting go of her jacket sleeve. She felt like she knew what was coming, but she had no idea how to prepare for it. It was the scariest situation she knew she had to face and the scariest situation she knew she could never take on. She couldn’t even face herself, let alone someone else saying what she knew she was.

“But she’s like… a total dyke.”

There it went.

Waverly felt a twinge in her, boiling with even more anger that Chrissy would even say that or use that word when saying so. Maybe she wasn’t such a great friend after all, since this clearly meant she wouldn’t accept Waverly either. 

Waverly knew deep down that she liked girls, but she still wasn’t completely on board with being comfortable with herself, or even acting on the fact that she liked them. It terrified her. And now Chrissy terrified her, too. It was bad enough to be petrified of herself, and now she had a whole school to fear. It was just a matter of time before the rumors started spreading, spreading from someone who was Waverly’s so-called best friend.

If she defended Nicole on this one thing, though, it’d be hell for the both of them. She kept her mouth shut, unable to even form words to reply.

Nicole angrily stood up and walked out of the stall, eyeing Chrissy and avoiding any eye contact with Waverly. She couldn’t sit there and let things be said about her any longer. Even if everything was true, she just couldn’t sit there and let it happen. For a moment she wondered if it was worth it. Regardless of what she did, the rumors would still spread and within a day everyone would be calling her the word that slipped from Chrissy’s lips just moments ago. She couldn’t stop it from happening, but if she just let it happen without even trying to step in, she’d never forgive herself.

“Really?” She clenched her fists. She wouldn’t hesitate to punch Chrissy’s lights out if it wouldn’t mean that she would no longer be able to go on the trip. She decided threatening her would at least do the trick. “I know I suck and all, but,” She shook her head as a single tear rolled down her cheek.

“But what?” Chrissy stepped forward. She had her growth spurt early, which meant she looked down at Nicole, being about three inches taller than the redhead. “What are you going to do, huh? Kiss me?”

“Chrissy, stop.” Waverly hopped off the counter and pushed Chrissy back, “Seriously.”

“I won’t,” Nicole ignored Waverly and stepped toward Chrissy, “But my fists will.” She lunged forward, but Waverly pushed them both away from each other before anyone could get hurt. 

“Stop!” She shouted, “Oh my gosh, just stop.” She sighed, fists clenched against both Nicole and her former friend, “Chrissy, please leave.”

Chrissy sighed and picked up her backpack, slinging it over her shoulder, “This isn’t over.” She started pacing out, “Have fun with your girlfriend, Waverly.”

Nicole bit her lip as more tears started falling down her red cheeks. As much as she wanted to wipe them and run away, though, she just let them fall, acting as if they weren’t there. She still had her fists clenched, and her whole body tightened as Waverly’s hand was still on her shoulder from when she pushed her back.

“I’m sorry about her.” Waverly took her hand off Nicole, both of them refusing to make eye contact with each other. “We may not like each other and all that,” She fixated her eyes on the ground, “But I know what’s wrong and what’s right.”

“Yeah,” Nicole nodded, eyes also glued to the floor, “So do I.” She walked out before anything else could be said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope u enjoyeddddd also i really did chrissy so wrong im so sorry 
> 
> tw: frootwyn  
> ig: haughtart


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Seriously,” Waverly yanked the earbud out of Nicole’s ear, the tip of her nose turning red.
> 
> “Ow!” Nicole held her ear and frowned up at Waverly, reaching for her precious earbud again. Nicole thought Waverly could deal with it and that she should stuff it. Her music wasn’t even that loud in the first place.
> 
> “Turn the music down!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i didnt proofread this as much as i usually do so im srry

Nicole and Waverly hadn’t spoken since the incident with Chrissy in the bathroom. They hadn’t even made eye contact. The rumors spread about the two of them and since then, both of them had been eating alone, Nicole in a bathroom stall and Waverly at an empty table in the middle of the cafeteria. No one would bother to sit near them because little to no one in the small town of Purgatory were out, and most people wanted it to stay that way. That was until Waverly had enough of the whispers around her. 

One day at lunch, someone mindlessly brushed past her, then whispered to their friend about catching something that Waverly apparently had. She huffed and stood up, climbing up onto the table and clapping once so everyone would look at her. “Listen here people,” She shouted, the cafeteria falling silent, “Despite what you all seem to believe because some immature little baby decided to start rumors, I am not gay!” She stepped down, but then quickly stepped back up, “But it is totally okay if you are!” 

From there, she naturally gained back the popularity she once had. If she had the guts to get up and say that, it must be true. People stopped acting so hostile around her, and the boys seemed to be attracted to her once again. Just like that, she built everything back up the way it should’ve been kept. 

Even if she had to tell a lie to do so.

Nicole didn’t get that advantage. She was left fending for herself, not even having the guts to speak to Rosita and Jeremy, who were her closest friends. They checked up on her from time to time, but they knew that she didn’t want to talk, and they respected that. Rosita still offered encouraging looks and waves to Nicole when they crossed paths in the hallway, like the good friend she was and always has been. She hadn’t given the rumors a second thought. Nicole was her best friend and nothing could change that. 

Nicole just wished it could all be easier, but she was starting to believe that she deserved for it to be hard. Maybe she was such a screw-up that things were always going to be way harder on her than anyone else. 

Now, Waverly and Nicole were forced to sit next to each other in seats that were way too close, both of them figuratively dying for the plane to get to the airport so they could move. However, they knew they had to sit next to each other on the plane, too. Stupid buddy-system rules. Both of them cursed the person who invented the buddy-system. Nicole was fourteen and Waverly had just turned fifteen last month; they could take care of themselves without a partner. Especially a partner that they despised. 

Nicole squirmed uncomfortably in her seat, positioning herself as far from Waverly as humanly possible. Every time she saw her she just kept thinking about what had happened, and how all of it was true and she couldn’t bring herself to confirm or deny anything. It wasn’t like anyone talked to her anymore anyway, it was mostly just the looks they gave her. She went from having everything and everyone wrapped around her finger to having absolutely no one left. She wished she could get it back the way Waverly did. She hoped that she would loosen up once they all got to the hotel. She was tired of feeling trapped and angry in her own skin.

The plane that everyone was taking to New York got called and the large group of freshmen followed the teachers to board the plane, all of them forced to sit next to their roommates. Everyone was paired with their friends, for the most part. Meanwhile, Nicole and Waverly were miserable alongside Rosita and Chrissy, who later got paired together.

One hour into the flight and Waverly was itching to at least get everything back to the way it was. She couldn’t take any more of the stupid tension, nor could she handle not picking on Nicole and being picked on back. She always thought she hated when they’d argue, but it became a normality in her life and she clung to tradition. Tradition, to her, meant something was right.

She nudged Nicole’s arm, an angry expression on her face.

Nicole furrowed her eyebrows and looked back at Waverly, reluctantly dying in her game of Temple Run.

Waverly motioned for Nicole to take an earbud out her ear, “Your music is so loud even the dead can hear it. Can you turn it down a little, please?” She asked, feeling the satisfaction of putting things back into their place. Things were more tense than usual between them and Waverly knew it was because of what Chrissy said. She just wanted Nicole to know that Waverly hated her before and after the rumors of her sexuality, and not because of them. They may have a rivalry going on, but Waverly was a good person.

Nicole rolled her eyes and put the earphone back in, turning her music up one notch higher. She needed to take control over herself again, get herself back to her roots: trouble. She’d been so out of character lately, and Waverly was finally giving her the motivation to be herself again.

Waverly dramatically sighed and leaned her head back on the seat, at least thankful that she got the window seat. Of course, that included a bit of arguing and a forced game of rock-paper-scissors, but she got it. Fair and square. Nicole wasn’t too happy about it, but the redhead figured there were worse things to worry about than not having a window seat for a two hour flight.

Nicole discreetly smirked as she slouched in her seat, bringing her knees up to her chest and placing her phone against her legs as she played another round of Temple Run. She’d been playing for the past hour, and for some reason, it was driving Waverly crazy watching her. 

“Seriously,” Waverly yanked the earbud out of Nicole’s ear, the tip of her nose turning red.

“Ow!” Nicole held her ear and frowned up at Waverly, reaching for her precious earbud again. Nicole thought Waverly could deal with it and that she should stuff it. Her music wasn’t even that loud in the first place.

“Turn the music down!” Waverly whisper-yelled, not wanting to get caught fighting with the person she was meant to be keeping in line. She clenched her jaw as she glared at Nicole, who was still angrily trying to reach for her earbud back.

“No way!” Nicole whisper-yelled back, “It’s the only way I can tune you out.”

Waverly’s cheeks now turned red with anger, “Tune me out? What did I do?”

“You breathed.” Nicole grabbed her earbud back, but Waverly wrapped both her hands around Nicole’s fist so she couldn’t put it back in.

Waverly sighed an exasperated and annoyed sigh, “Just turn the fricken music down.” She watched as Nicole’s eyes softened just a bit, but the frown was still on her face. She clicked the volume down button four times before snatching her earbud back and shoving it back in her ear. 

“Thank you,” Waverly picked her own phone back up and sifted through her apps, looking for something to do when she heard Paramore blasting through a certain someone’s earphones again.

“For the love of God, Nicole,” She shoved Nicole’s arm, to which the redhead ignored, knowing it would get on Waverly’s nerves. Nicole smirked again and pulled the hood of her sweatshirt over her head, tuning Waverly out entirely. Eventually, the brunette gave up. The rest of the plane ride was silent from the two of them, minus the sound of Paramore coming from Nicole’s earphones and the sound of her tapping her screen every now and then.

 

-

 

Everyone arrived at the hotel around eight at night, to which the teachers instructed them all to shower and head straight to sleep. Obviously, though, when you have an alarming number of fourteen and fifteen year olds sharing rooms with their friends, almost nobody is going to follow those instructions.

Waverly opened the door to her and Nicole’s room, thankful for the two beds that were a good distance apart. She mentally noted not to fall asleep until long after Nicole had. Just to be safe. Waverly then claimed her own bed and set her suitcase down next to it, Nicole doing the same for the opposite bed.

Once Waverly had her things settled and her shoes off, she stood up, “Alright, Haught,” She said strictly, “Listen up.”

Nicole chuckled and looked at Waverly. She was in for a long, long week. A part of her hoped it wouldn’t be like this the whole time, but the other part of her didn’t mind the thought of having a lot of opportunities to push Waverly’s buttons. This trip was meant to be fun, after all. 

“Rule number one,” Waverly began, “No touching the phone. We aren’t allowed. Two, no going out the room after the teachers say so. Seem easy enough so far, Nicole?”

Nicole clenched her jaw and nodded, “It’d be easier if you’d stop talking to me like I’m some sort of corrupt toddler.” She didn’t like the tone Waverly was using on her. It sounded like she was explaining rules to a two year old.

Waverly sighed, ignoring Nicole’s complaint, “Three, if you prank me, expect me to retaliate. So don’t be stupid, stupid. Am I still talking to you like a corrupt toddler?” She asked, annoyance clearly written across her features.

Nicole rolled her eyes, “It’s not like you’d care, anyway, Waverly. Also, I’m not stupid, stupid.”

“You really expect me to believe that?” Waverly scoffed, feeling very secure in her place at the top of the class. 

“I’ve had straight A’s since the second grade. The only reason I’m second to you is because I'm taking art instead of another useless core class.” Nicole was planning on sticking to her short replies, but she at least wanted to threaten Waverly’s intelligence. Nicole was just as academically inclined as Waverly, and she didn’t want Waverly taking that away from her. 

The brunette sighed, deciding not to elaborate on her annoyance, and picked back up where she left off, “Rule number four, no touching any of my things, including my bed.”

“This bed?” Nicole got up and jumped onto it, at least being in her socks rather than her shoes at this point.

“Hey, stop!” Waverly whined, “Get down!” She reached for Nicole, but was obviously not going to get very far. 

“Make me,” Nicole grabbed a pillow and threw it at Waverly, “You’re so uptight.” She looked down at Waverly from her place on the bed, crossing her arms, “You really do have a stick up your butt.” The hood of her jacket had now fallen off her head, leaving her short red hair a bit frizzy and curlier than usual.

“Do not!” Waverly got up on the bed, now standing at Nicole’s height.

“Do too!” Nicole retaliated, “Let loose, woman.” She hopped off of Waverly’s bed, “Otherwise, neither of us are going to make it out of this trip alive.” She picked up the pillow she had previously thrown at Waverly and tossed it back on the bed, walking back over to her suitcase and sitting down.

“Whatever,” Waverly sat on her bed instead of standing up on it, “If you were ‘uptight’ like me, maybe we wouldn’t even have to be stupid roommates in the first place.” She snapped, using air quotes around the word ‘uptight.’ It was Waverly’s job to make sure Nicole acted right, and she was not going to fail at that. If uptight was what she had to be, uptight is what she would be. This was  _ her _ trip, her room, and her rules.

Nicole grabbed a band shirt and pajama shorts out of her suitcase to change into after she showered, “And if you loosened up a bit like me, you wouldn’t be the one that I got put with.” She stood up, “I call the shower first.” She started walking towards the door to the bathroom.

Waverly was the one to angrily cross her arms now, “Really? You’d rather get placed with Chrissy than me? Because she’s just as much of a goodie-two-shoes as I am, you know.” 

“At least Chrissy would leave me alone,” Nicole replied, “Otherwise she’d catch the gay disease, right?” Nicole walked into the bathroom and shut and locked the door behind her, sighing with relief at the bit of alone time she was finally getting. Waverly was too much to deal with. Nicole figured she would be taking a  _ lot _ of showers to get out of Waverly’s grip.

She thought over what Waverly said about Chrissy. Maybe she would prefer rooming with her, since Chrissy would never touch a lesbian in fear of getting called one. Maybe she would be better off getting left completely alone. Then again, Waverly, though an enemy to Nicole, wouldn’t torture Nicole like Chrissy. Waverly would treat Nicole like a normal human being, and she has been. She found herself grateful that nothing between them changed after the rumors circulated. Waverly treated Nicole with the same annoyance and Nicole the same to her.

Waverly heard the water start running so she sat on her bed, stuffed herself between two pillows and took the opportunity to put another pillow to her face. She found herself hurt by Nicole saying she’d rather Chrissy. Chrissy was evil, despite what Waverly had previously thought. At least Waverly wouldn’t stoop to using someone’s sexuality as an insult, whether Nicole was actually a lesbian or not. It didn’t matter what Nicole was; that didn’t affect Waverly disliking her. 

A part of her even hoped that the rumors were true about Nicole, that she actually liked girls. Waverly may hate Nicole, but at least she’d feel not as alone and uncomfortable in her own sexuality. She’s only come to terms with herself liking girls about four months ago, but she’d been questioning since forever, trying to repress this part of herself for as long as she can remember. She hated that she had to do it all by herself. She’d even appreciate her enemy also being like her, just so she could know for sure that she wasn’t alone in the world.

As she kept digging herself deeper in her thoughts, the tears started to fall. She was so frustrated with everything, and nothing made sense, and life completely sucked sometimes. This was going to be a long, unbearable trip. One hour in and she already wanted to go home. She wondered if Nicole felt the same way. She wondered how Nicole felt about it all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> woo teen angst
> 
> ig: haughtart  
> tw: frootwyn


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you to rosita for comic relief

The first full day of the trip was going to end with an ice cream social in the cafeteria of the hotel. Fifty rowdy freshman rushed through the doors and to the ice cream, all talking over one another and shoving to get to their favorite flavor. Nicole walked slowly behind the group, not planning on getting any ice cream anyway. She found a table in the corner and sat by herself, one of the teacher chaperones coming up to her and bending down to her height.

Ms. Kate, someone who had a lot of faith in Nicole, checked up on her, “Are you alright? You don’t want any ice cream?”

Nicole shook her head, “I’m okay. I’m lactose intolerant anyway.” She shrugged, not actually being okay, but actually being lactose intolerant. She broke the eye contact and looked back down at her lap.

“Well, remember this is a social, after all. Spend some time with your friends, okay?” She gave Nicole’s shoulder a friendly rub before walking off to watch over the other students. 

Nicole folded her arms and watched the crowd of students push each other out the way, laugh with their friends, enjoy themselves. She wished to be a part of that. She wished she’d let herself be happy and silly, but she was once again thinking that maybe she just didn’t deserve that. She sat alone in her corner, watching the world and time pass in front of her while her feet stayed glued to the ground. She often felt like everything just moved and she was stuck watching it all pass. She never was able to catch a grasp of time and run with it. Everything passed her up.

“Nicole!” 

The redhead looked up with a frown still on her face, watching Rosita run towards her. Rosita, who never left Nicole’s side. Rosita, who Nicole trusted more than anyone, but could never let herself admit that to. She found a smile growing on her face, wiping away the previous frown.

Rosita slid into the booth next to Nicole, a mix of vanilla and chocolate ice cream in her bowl with way too many sprinkles. She must have been at the beginning of the line. “I haven’t talked to you in forever!” She exaggerated, “How’s rooming with Earp?”

Nicole chuckled with a roll of her eyes, “Exactly what you’d expect. She’s way too uptight, and she even gave me a list of rules to follow, like I’m some stupid kid.” Nicole folded her arms, “But I was thinking hard, and honestly it’s better than being with Chrissy. How’s that going?”

Rosita shook her head, “She’s an actual demon, Nicole, I swear. I can’t say she’s given me rules, but she’s so… bitchy!” Rosita said the word under her breath, but knew no other word could do the trick. She couldn’t describe the evil.

“Trust me, I know,” Nicole sighed, a moment of silence ticking by, “Also, I have to, umm, tell you-” Nicole stopped her sentence, hearing her name dropped from a table nearby. She looked to her left and saw Chrissy was sitting with Waverly, Champ, and Tucker. 

“No, I’m serious,” Chrissy laughed, “She really is a total lesbian. Like actually.” She continued laughing, “I’d know.”

“You’d know?” Champ leaned forward, “She told you?”

“Well, not explicitly,” Chrissy basked in the attention, “But I can just tell. I mean, look at her.”

Within less than a second, all the eyes were on Nicole. Not only that table, but all the people who heard what Chrissy said. Nicole looked down at her lap, biting her lip before letting any tears fall. She couldn’t let this get to her. She had to keep herself up. She can’t let someone make her cry, and she can’t let herself cry in front of everyone. She’d look like a total freak, more a freak than everyone else already thought she was.

Waverly looked sadly at Nicole, wishing she hadn’t been roped into sitting with Chrissy again. She was tired of being walked all over. She was tired of constantly falling back to Chrissy because she was addicted to consistency, even if that consistency was toxic. She was tired of being the bystander. 

“Chrissy, stop.” Waverly said, “C’mon.”

“Stop?” Chrissy and everyone else now burned their eyes into Waverly, “Have _ you _ got something to confess, Miss Waverly Earp?” Chrissy stood up, “You’ve got the hots for Haught or something?” 

Waverly cowarded back, “No,” She shook her head and stood up, “But I’m not a complete asshole.” 

The class shared an ‘oooh’ as they listened to the argument, one kid shouted for them to fight. Waverly’s lips twitched into a smirk for a second, but straightened out quickly once she focused her attention back on Chrissy.

“At least I’m not a freak.” She retaliated, “Better to be an asshole than a-”

Nicole got up and started pacing out of the cafeteria, not allowing herself to hear the rest of the conversation. She started running once she was out, making her way to the stairs and climbing up them as fast as she possibly could. She couldn’t risk being in the elevator with someone else. It was better to get a head start up the steps, even if she had to get up five floors. 

Rosita was the only one who chased after her, leaving Chrissy to stand proudly and say that she proved her point. Rosita sprinted as fast as she could, deciding upon the elevator since she figured she would tire on the stairs. She clicked the button repeatedly until it opened, running in and pressing the number four as rapidly as she could. She stood against the wall of the elevator, quickly giving a polite smile to the lady who walked in with her to go to the fifth floor. 

“You look stressed,” The woman commented, “Ice cream social got dramatic?”

“You have no fricken idea,” Rosita shook her head, “And my stupid roommate is the one who started the drama. I’m totally gonna punch her lights out. This is New York, for heaven’s sakes. You’d think being gay is fine over here, huh?” She sighed, “I’d fill you in, but I gotta run,” The elevator opened and Rosita ran out, catching Nicole right before she entered her room. She grabbed the redhead’s wrist and dragged her down the hallway to her and Chrissy’s room, shutting and locking them in. She set her hands on Nicole’s shoulders, “Nicole, look at me.”

Nicole looked up, red curls in her face and tears streaming down her cheeks. She couldn’t stop them from falling. She couldn’t stop anything.

“Don’t listen to her, okay? She’s stupid.” Rosita comforted, brushing Nicole’s hair out her face.

Nicole started crying harder, sobbing even. She put her face in her hands and let the tears spill. She felt her whole world collapse and she couldn’t do anything about it. Everything was falling apart. Everyone hated her. She hated her. Nothing was ever going to be the way it should, and she deserved every bit of it. She deserved the torture, and she deserved to be called a freak. That was what she was, after all.

“Nicole?” Rosita panicked slightly, “Nicole, don’t worry. I wouldn’t listen to a word she says. It’s all bullshit.”

Nicole shook her head, “No it’s not! It’s not bullshit, I’m bullshit!” She took her hands off her face, revealing her red cheeks and broken eyes, a side of Nicole that Rosita had never seen before. Nicole never let the darkness seep through the cracks and make itself present on the outside. She always kept it in. But now Rosita saw the cracks.

“C’mon, Nicole, you aren’t bullshit; you’re awesome!” Rosita encouraged.

“You don’t get it!” Nicole shouted, scaring herself with the sound of her own raised voice, “You’ll never get it.” She clenched her fists, her words barely even able to be heard through her sobs. Everything was getting caught in her throat.

“Help me understand then,” Rosita rubbed her friend’s shoulders, “I’m here for you, always.”

Nicole didn’t even bother trying to wipe the tears at this point. She was hurting and Rosita knew it, so there was no point in holding back. She couldn’t anymore. She just needed to find the words and say them and maybe one thing in her life would work out. Maybe she could have one good thing. 

She questioned whether or not she deserved that one good thing. A question that was always on her mind whenever something happened to her.

She swallowed the lump in her throat only to have it crawl back up, “Chrissy’s right, Rosita.” She said quietly, almost as low as a whisper, “I’m-” She began to cry again, “I’m gay.” She couldn’t stop shaking. Her hands trembled and she couldn’t believe the words that came out her mouth. Her head filled that those same two words over and over again, picking and jabbing at every inch of her brain. Her head pounded over and over again with shame, and she was convinced she wasn’t even breathing anymore. Now that the words were out, she had to accept that it was really true, and that was something she just couldn’t do. She choked out a weak, “I’m sorry,” in between her gasps for air.

There was a moment of silence before Rosita sprung forward and wrapped her arms around her best friend, pulling her close. She found herself beginning to cry as well. “Nicole Rayleigh Haught,” She started, “You are my best friend. Nothing is going to change that no matter what you are.”

Nicole sobbed. She sobbed of anger, of sadness, and maybe with a hint of relief. She hugged Rosita back, something she hadn’t done to anyone in too long of a time, “You can’t tell anyone, okay?”

“Of course not,” Rosita replied, “But you are not a freak. You’re not wrong, or a loser, or anything else Chrissy says. You are awesome, and you’re strong as hell, and I kind of love you. This doesn’t change anything.”

Nicole needed that. She needed Rosita. She needed those words and that support. She’d never heard that from anyone. She’d never heard that she was okay or that it didn’t matter what she was. She never knew support until now. She couldn’t even support herself the way Rosita does. She was thankful. She took in every word and tried her hardest not to deny them. “Thank you.”

“No problem,” Rosita pulled away from the hug, “I’m always here for you. And I am totally gonna torture Chrissy just for you.”

Nicole managed a light laugh, “That is why you’re my best friend.”

“Always and forever. Now I suggest you clean up and get a good night’s sleep. Maybe push one or two of Earp’s buttons, too.”

“Will do,” Nicole nodded, allowing Rosita to walk her back to her room before everyone got back. She took the opportunity to take a shower, one in which she started to cry again, leaned against the cold tile. She spent so much time never crying for the sake of her own sanity, and now she was letting it all go. She’d bottled up too many feelings, and now she felt the consequences all at once. It was times like these where she no longer felt numb; she felt everything at once. She repressed emotion until she couldn’t anymore.

Of course, it was wonderful to have such support from Rosita and to openly trust someone so much, but that just couldn’t amount to what Nicole would suffer every day, not only torture from herself, but from everyone else around her. She would even second guess the looks strangers would give her, terrified that somehow they’d find out and she’d be left fighting for herself, begging for what they’re saying about her to not be true. 

But it was all true. And despite tireless efforts, she couldn’t change its truth.

Nicole exited the shower, her face red and eyes puffy. If Waverly asked, she’d lie and say she got soap in her eyes, and Waverly would call her an idiot, and everything would be fine. She dried off and threw on leggings and one of her dad’s old band shirts that he’d given her when she was little. It reminded her of simpler times, when she wasn’t absolutely terrified of her parents. 

She brushed through her hair quickly and walked out, throwing on her hoodie as she climbed on her bed and pulled out a comic book, trying to relax from the previous terror of the day. 

In about thirty minutes, the rest of the class started piling back into their rooms, Waverly not looking the brightest once she entered. She shook it off and looked at Nicole and immediately felt awful, but was glad she was able to win an argument with Chrissy in the long run. She stood up for Nicole specifically this time, but it didn’t matter who she was sticking up for. If someone was getting teased for no reason, she’d stand up for them no matter what. 

She could tell Nicole had been crying. “Chrissy is such an idiot,” Waverly started getting a pair of pajamas out of her suitcase, “Don’t listen to her. Everything that comes out of her mouth is bullcrap.”

Nicole quirked an eyebrow, looking up from her comic book,  “And why do you care?”

“Listen, Nicole, you’re a loser, but not because of your sexuality, whatever it is. I don’t care about that.” Waverly said honestly. She had a hunch that maybe the rumors were true. And she wasn’t going to ask or pry, nor was she going to come out herself, but nobody deserved to be treated a certain way because of who they like. And Waverly was thankful to somewhat know that someone was like her. 

Nicole smiled softly, “And you’re an absolute gremlin, but not because of your sexuality, whatever it is. I don’t care about that,” Nicole repeated. She wasn’t lying about it either. For once, her and Waverly seemed to find a common ground on something. She wondered if Waverly was like her, and just couldn’t say it, much like her. As of now, she was the only person (besides Rosita) in Purgatory to not care about what gender someone was attracted to. Maybe a part of Nicole hoped for Waverly to be like her. Maybe she wouldn’t seem too bad after that, since Nicole would be able to see where all of her tightly-woundness comes from.

Waverly stood up and began to walk to the bathroom, “And, Nicole?” 

“Yeah?” Nicole looked back up from her book.

“Don’t sneak off again. Rule number five, stupid.” Waverly smiled softly, making sure Nicole still knew where they stood. 

Nicole laughed lightly, “I will do exactly the opposite of what you say, Earp.”

Waverly rolled her eyes and shut the bathroom door. She was assured that Nicole was okay. At least just for tonight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the last update, it's been a really busy weekend.
> 
> tw: frootwyn  
> ig: haughtart


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Hey,” Waverly stepped in, “Chill out.”
> 
> “I’m not going to chill out,” Nicole said, jaw clenched. “And you are going to stay out of this.”
> 
> “You don’t control me.” Waverly replied.

“Wake up, Nicole,” Waverly, already dressed and ready at 6:30 in the morning, made sure she was up and finished before Nicole, so she knew they wouldn’t argue over the bathroom. Now that she was finally done, though, it was actually time for Nicole to wake up.

Nicole pulled the covers over her head, “No.” She had a rough night last night and didn’t have much luck sleeping either. She was filled to the brim with nerves. Rumors were enough, but facts were unbearable. She couldn’t even face the facts herself. Her life was in Rosita’s hands, and if she let that go, it was over.

“C’mon,” Waverly nudged Nicole, “Get up, idiot.” She tried to tug the covers, but Nicole had a grip on them.

“Go away,” Nicole mumbled. She wasn’t even in the mood for arguing, and she wasn’t doing this to push Waverly’s buttons. Nicole had enough, and she just couldn’t pull herself out of bed. She was destroyed. She needed time to recuperate before she was thrown into more social activities where everyone only stared and whispered about her. She was an absolute joke now. She had no power anymore.

Waverly huffed, grabbing a pillow off her already made bed and hitting Nicole with it, “Get up!”

“No!” Nicole curled into a ball, close to tears again. Everything was too much to handle, and she would eventually have to go out for the day and pretend that nothing was bothering her.

But everything was bothering her. Her secret was practically out at this point, and now everyone treated her like she had some sort of disease. She lost everything, and there was no point in trying to get it back when people would just walk all over her again. Nothing had a point now. Nothing would get better.

“Nicole, I _will_ pour water on you.” Waverly threatened, hitting her with the pillow again.

“I’m up!” Nicole yelled, a bit louder than either of them were expecting. She pulled herself from the safety of the covers and glared at Waverly, “Are you happy now?” She ripped the pillow from Waverly’s hands and hit her back before throwing the pillow to the ground and storming into the bathroom.

Waverly could tell something was up now. This wasn’t Nicole’s usual bitterness. Deep down, Waverly knew the brokenness that Nicole was suffering, except Waverly had the complete opposite damage being done. Her secret _wasn’t_ out, and she constantly had to lie to protect it. However, her walls were getting thin. A few people had already started whispering about her and Nicole dating, which is the absolute _last_ thing she’d ever do.

She leaned against the door and heard a few faint sniffles from the other side. She brought her hand up and knocked softly.

“Oh my gosh,” Nicole snapped, “What the hell do you want now?”

“I just wanted to say I’m sorry. Geez.” Waverly swallowed a lump in her throat. She didn’t know why the thought of Nicole alone on the floor crying made her want to cry until she had no tears left, too.

“Yeah, whatever.” Nicole pushed her way out and grabbed her outfit for the day before locking herself back in the bathroom, trying not to distract herself with her own tears as she got ready as fast as she could.

 

-

 

The group was at Ripley’s Believe It Or Not, a museum in Times Square. They were allowed to go off by themselves as long as they stayed with their partners. Waverly and Nicole would typically see this as a nightmare, but Waverly knew Nicole was hurting and figured it was better to give her space for today. They stayed together, but Waverly spent time that she’d usually spend bickering trying to make Nicole laugh.

The two approached the statue of the world’s tallest man, Waverly looking up and down the figure, “What if I was this tall?” She smiled at Nicole, “I feel like my head would look really small.”

A laugh was earned from Nicole. The redhead snickered a bit picturing such a small figure being so tall. She looked up at the statue as well, “Maybe you will be this tall. Neither of us have hit our growth spurts yet.” Nicole and Waverly currently stood at the same height, both of them looking up at the statue from the same low angle.

Waverly walked away from the figure and looked around the room. It was currently just the two of them in the current exhibit, “Wanna go to the next room?” She asked.

“Sure,” Nicole followed her wherever she led them for the rest of the museum. They didn’t talk much, but they actually had a few conversations here and there without wanting to rip each other’s heads off. There was still underlying apprehension, but for now, they were civil.

“That is a lot of piercings,” Waverly looked at a picture of the person in the world with the most piercings. “All I have are my ears. I want to get them pierced again, though. Like yours.”

Nicole smiled softly, “I want more on my ears. But I think I’ll let my mom get over her anger about my nose piercing for now.” She looked down at her feet, fighting the urge to think about when she’d have to go back home. She found herself preferring Waverly and their hotel room to her actual life at home.

“Hardcore,” Waverly replied, “Annoyingly hardcore,” She teased, nudging Nicole’s arm. “I’ve secretly always wanted one, actually.”

“Interesting,” Nicole chuckled, Waverly actually catching a glimpse of Nicole’s dimple for the first time. She smiled, too.

The pair walked around for about thirty more minutes, ending in the gift shop with the majority of the rest of the class. Everyone looked toward Nicole as she walked in, but she ducked away and walked to an empty corner, looking at a wide variety of different key chains. She ran her hand along them, trying to distract herself from the world behind her.

Waverly spent a bit of time away from Nicole, but made her way back to her when a certain group decided to gossip again. She went to the corner Nicole was in and looked at all the keychains, “They never have my name on these things,” She scoffed, looking at the W section even if she knew her name wouldn’t be there.

“You know, you don’t have to be by my side this whole time.” Nicole said. She didn’t exactly hate the company and the feeling of being normal, but her and Waverly weren’t friends. Never have been, and never will be. She frowned as she looked back at the different things in the corner.

“I know,” Waverly replied, “But it’s either you or gossip girl over there.” She rolled her eyes, “It’s like everyone is her minion now. It’s so stupid.”

Nicole nodded, “I agree.”

They could both still hear the chatter of the rest of the students, chatter that was now not only about Nicole, but about Waverly, too. Nicole shook her head as she listened. High school was horrible. These weren’t going to be the best years of her life like everyone said it was going to be. These were either going to be the worst or the last years, and she just wanted to get out as soon as possible. People were too judgemental and too invested in popularity to care about authenticity and real friendships. Nicole couldn’t tolerate the artificialness of it all.

“Ditch the dyke,” Somebody mumbled.

Waverly looked at Nicole with wide eyes, but Nicole simply turned around to face the group, walking towards them all.

“Do any of you ever shut up?” Her voice overpowered the previous mumbles. Everyone went silent. “Seriously,” She sighed, “Whether the false rumors are true or not, what does it have to do with you?” She walked up to Chrissy, “Especially _you_ ,” She shoved the taller girl’s shoulders.

“Me?” Chrissy shoved Nicole back, “You’re the one who needs to shut up. No one wants to listen to you. Why do you even go here, freak?” She shoved Nicole again.

“I’m not a freak,” Nicole retaliated, feeling her throat close in. She took in a wheezing breath as she looked up at Chrissy. She tried to listen to herself. She wasn’t a freak. She wasn't a freak. She wasn’t a freak. She wasn’t a freak. She wasn’t a freak.

She didn’t believe herself.

“Like that convinces anybody,” Chrissy laughed, “And don’t _ever_ put you hands on me again.”

Nicole furrowed her eyebrows and pushed Chrissy with a bit more force than she intended, but maybe it was better that way. She was angry, and she was a freak, but she wasn’t going to let anyone else step all over her when she used to have it all. She used to have everything, and she was going to get it back. She was the only one allowed to call herself a freak and a screw-up.

“Hey,” Waverly stepped in, “Chill out.”

“I’m not going to chill out,” Nicole said, jaw clenched. “And you are going to stay out of this.”

“You don’t control me.” Waverly replied.

“But I control this,” Nicole, with more gentleness, moved Waverly back as she stepped up to Chrissy once more. Her blood boiled. She was never one to publicly lose her temper or let her emotions show themselves, but if everything was going to come crashing down, she might as well put everything on the front. Her eyes welled for a split second, but she was able to hold back. Her jaw clenched and she ignored the cramp forming in her neck from looking up. “Keep talking about me. See how far that gets you.” Nicole took a step back and walked calmly out of the gift shop without Waverly by her side. She ran off quicker than Waverly could keep up and locked herself, again, in a bathroom stall.

 

-

 

“Don’t run off like that again.” Waverly said angrily as her and Nicole got back to their hotel room. “We could’ve gotten in a lot of trouble.” She shut the door to their room and plopped down on her bed.

“I don’t care,” Nicole sat on her bed against the pillows and pulled out a comic book. She then grabbed her earphones and plugged them into her phone, looking for music to play.

“I do, though.” Waverly retaliated, “And don’t tune me out yet, I’m not done.”

“But I am, though,” Nicole mocked, putting in one earphone, “I don’t want to deal with you right now. I have enough going on. Thanks for the temporary niceness today, though. Even if you didn’t mean it.” She brought her knees up and avoided eye contact. It wasn’t like her to thank someone for being nice to her, especially Waverly. Nicole was actually a nice person, as with Waverly; they were only hostile towards each other. Nicole found that she surprisingly enjoyed when the two got along earlier, though. It was a nice breath of fresh air.

“I did mean it.” Waverly said, “I guess.”

“You guess?” Nicole chuckled, “Like I buy that.”

“Stop being like that.” Waverly turned to face Nicole, sitting cross-legged on her bed.

“Like what?”

“So negative.”

“I have every right to be negative. My entire high school experience will be absolute hell for the next four years, and probably after that, and there’s nothing I can do about it. I feel like shit, if you haven’t noticed, and I’m not going to act positively when my roommate is treating me like I’m two years old, and my classmates are treating me like I have some sort of disease.” She didn’t look up from her book once. She knew if she looked Waverly in the eyes she’d start crying. “And you have every right to dislike me, but just this once, it’d be great if you would consider not making me feel any worse than I already do.”

Waverly was silent for a few moments. She knew Nicole was down, and it was her fault for being insensitive towards that. She should've done better. She knows she can always do better, but she always ends up being mediocre all the time. “I’m sorry.” She mumbled, “But don’t think I don’t feel like shit, too. This trip sucks.”

“Because you got roomed with me.” Nicole sighed.

“Not because of that.” Waverly said, feeling her heart suddenly start to pound out of her chest, “Because my best friend turned out to be an absolute dickface and I feel kind of defenseless about it.” She bit her lip, “And I know she hates me.”

“She clearly doesn’t hate you if she told you to ditch the dyke today.” Nicole replied sarcastically, throwing a wall back up so she wouldn’t have to talk about her feelings anymore.

“Trust me, she hates me.” Waverly leaned back against the pillows, “And maybe I hate her, too. She’s a bitch.” The two of them didn’t curse often, but now the conversation was turning into one with liberal amounts of ‘bad’ words. It made them feel better. It made them feel like they were releasing all the anger they’d built up over the course of their lives.

“Agreed.” Nicole said, “I mean I agree that she’s a bitch. Not that I hate you.”

“You don’t hate me?” Waverly furrowed her eyebrows and looked at Nicole, who has yet to look back at her. She felt her heart rate pick up thinking about the fact that her roommate didn’t actually hate her. It cleared off her worry about not having everyone like her, and it made her feel better that she wasn’t rooming with someone she thought she shared a hatred with.

Nicole shook her head, “I don’t have any reason to hate you. Hate is kind of a strong word. I’d only use that word on Chrissy.”

Waverly smiled for a second but it returned to a frown quickly, “I guess I don’t hate you either. I used to, though.”

“Glad things have changed.” Nicole turned the page of her book, still trying to settle her breathing from when she was worked up in the conversation. “Can I ask you why you think Chrissy really hates you?”

Waverly’s heart rate picked up again, but she was sure of her response that she planned out in her head, “She doesn’t hate me on the outside, but she hates who I am on the inside.”

Nicole looked up for the first time since they’d gotten into their room and looked at Waverly. She was sure she misinterpreted what Waverly said. She had to be talking about something else. There was no way in the world that Waverly was what she was implying she was, and Nicole could barely believe herself when the thought popped in her head. She quirked an eyebrow at Waverly, waiting for her to continue.

The brunette took a breath, “She doesn’t like who I am,” She repeated, “Because I’m like you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi comment ur thoughts i love reading them
> 
> tw: frootwyn  
> ig: haughtart


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “But we have each other,” Waverly, always an optimist, said, “I never thought I’d say those words to you, no offense, but I’m glad I’m saying them. And to be completely honest, I’m glad I’m saying them to you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> enjoy some little nicole & waverly innocence.

Nicole looked at Waverly as all the features on her face softened. Her eyebrows were raised and she felt like she could cry, or maybe she was crying, but she just didn’t realize because she couldn’t focus on anything else. A space in her chest filled just a bit. She wasn’t alone. 

It took a moment for her to speak. She sat in the silence and looked away, but looked back at Waverly eventually. A few pieces of her broken and fallen world patched themselves back together and a few of the clouds in her head cleared. She had someone. She didn’t care that it was Waverly, who she was supposed to dislike, but was finding that she didn’t dislike as much as she thought. She had someone like her. Someone who knew what it was like.

She opened her mouth to speak, but closed it again. She took another moment to breathe. “You’re…” She shook her head as she looked down at her lap, “You’re like me?” She looked up through a few strands of red hair. 

Waverly brought her knees up to her chest and rested her head on them, “Only if the rumors about you are true. Otherwise I’d look like an idiot.” She brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, biting her lip as tears welled up in her eyes. She’d never voiced her feelings for girls before. She’d kept it inside for as long as she’d known and never let anyone hear even a hint to her sexuality. Her stomach felt like it flipped upside down, but if Nicole had proved to be anything, it was that she was trustworthy. Something about her told Waverly that she could come out and say it. And it was the scariest, but most secure feeling in the world. She now shared this with Nicole and no one else. 

Nicole grabbed the tissue box off the nightstand in between their beds and handed it to Waverly, “You aren’t an idiot.” She kept herself from crying so that she could be strong in the moment, “They’re true.” She sat back on her bed after Waverly took the tissues. “But you can’t say anything.”

“I won’t,” Waverly pulled out a tissue and wiped the few tears that started falling, “You can’t say anything about me either.” She looked at Nicole seriously through her blurred vision, “I’ve never said it out loud.”

“I’ve only said it out loud one time before this.” Nicole nervously toyed with the sleeve of the hoodie she was wearing, “But Chrissy seems to be doing all the work for me. My life was shitty enough before her.”

Waverly silently sympathized before she spoke again. She gave herself time to recollect. “I’m sorry about her.”

“Don’t apologize for something you aren’t a part of.” Nicole moved to lay down and stare at the ceiling, “She’s actually not the biggest of my problems.” She allowed herself to take her wall down for Waverly. If Waverly had the courage to open up to Nicole, Nicole could find the courage to open up to Waverly. Suddenly they weren’t enemies. It was as if they had never been enemies in the first place. In just a moment they understood. Waverly understood why Nicole was hostile and angry. Nicole understood why Waverly was too caught up in her reputation and so concerned with what other people thought of her. One thing allowed them to see so much in the other. And maybe their dislike for each other stemmed from not knowing the other enough and not being able to find out more. Maybe they wanted to know each other so badly that they were angry.

Waverly continued to dry her eyes when needed, but kept her eyes on Nicole. “How in the world is Chrissy not the biggest of you problems? I can barely stand what she’s doing, and I’m not even the target.”

Nicole shook her head and sighed, “Religious parents. They once caught me listening to Lady Gaga and had me talk to a priest about it,” She scoffed, “They would die if they found out I like girls.” Tears welled up in her eyes, “You’d never see me again. But I guess, for you, that wouldn’t be a bad thing.”

“It’d be an awful thing,” Waverly replied impulsively. “And I’m really sorry they’re like that. My parents are dead, but my sister is really great.”

“Oh my God,” Nicole sat up, “I’m so sorry, I had no idea.”

“No, it’s fine,” Waverly chuckled, trying to lighten the atmosphere, “Really. I was little. My sister is awesome, and she takes care of me along with my aunt. Don’t feel bad, please. I’m okay.”

Nicole relaxed again and laid back down, “I’m glad you’re okay. And I have a sister, too. She’s away in college now, though, so I don’t see her often.” Nicole twiddled her thumbs, “It kind of sucks. She’s so awesome.”

Waverly enjoyed hearing Nicole talk about her family. And she enjoyed that they were both opening up to one another. She was in desperate need of someone she could talk to. It was strange of the universe to make that person Nicole, but Nicole turned out to be a pretty great person in the long run. Nicole was nothing like Waverly judged her to be. She was compassionate and innocent and kind. Her exterior was her, too, but it told nothing about who she was on the inside, who she was in her most vulnerable and telling state. Waverly could understand why she was the way she was. 

Nicole welled up at the thought of her sister being gone. She was the only person she really confided in, and, though not out to her, she knew she would be okay with who Nicole was because that’s just the type of person her sister is.

Nicole got off of her bed for just a moment to grab a tissue from Waverly, then sitting herself back on her bed with it. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry,” Waverly replied through silent-falling tears, “This is scary.” She could hear her heart beating in her ears and her hands shook as they clung to her legs. She was physically trembling with fear, but she knew that getting past this fear would result in something. Something good. 

Nicole nodded, “It’s just that I kind of feel like I don’t have anyone, even if, in reality, I do. I told Rosita yesterday and she was fine. And I have you, but I still feel like since I don’t really like who I am, nobody else likes me either. And the whole grade is proving that to me.”

Waverly dried the constant-falling tears, “I know exactly how you feel. It sucks.”

“It sucks big time.” Nicole avoided eye contact again, feeling more exposed than she ever had before. She didn’t know if the exposure was a good or bad thing, but the feeling was currently unsettling. She didn’t do well with change, and this was one of the biggest changes she’d ever had to face. In just a matter of seconds and a few words, her whole world changed. Waverly was correct in saying that this situation was scary. It was the scariest feeling in the world to feel so exposed and vulnerable. 

“But we have each other,” Waverly, always an optimist, said, “I never thought I’d say those words to you, no offense, but I’m glad I’m saying them. And to be completely honest, I’m glad I’m saying them to you.”

Nicole figured she was glad the words were said to her, and she was glad those words came from Waverly. One good thing about this all was not having to carry the pressure of their dislike towards one another all the time. It was always too much tension, and Nicole feared that at some point she would run out of snarky comments and buttons to push. This new friendly air between them was a good change. Nicole at least knew that. “Thank you for saying that. I’m glad that I have you, even though I also never expected those words to come out of my mouth. No offense.”

“None taken, Haught,” Waverly managed a light chuckle, though it was more of just a soft smile and blowing more air out of her nose than usual. However, it wasn’t crying, and that was a good sign. She always looked for the good signs. 

Nicole, on the other hand, always looked for the bad signs. A good change, though, was that she currently couldn’t sense or pick out any. Waverly, to her, was typically a living, breathing bad sign, but now Waverly was the best sign that she could ask for. She saw a light in her. Something good.

The brunette pondered for a moment in the silence. This was a new silence. It wasn’t awkward, nor was it tense. It was an open silence from now open people; a silence they hadn’t known before now. “Can I ask you something?” Waverly inquired, eyes still glossed over, but no longer spilling.

“You just did,” Nicole teased, trying to ease the nerves. Waverly smiled softly, but didn’t laugh. Nicole regained a more serious composure, “Kidding. Go ahead.”

Waverly was still hugging her legs close to her chest, making herself as small as she could be, “How did you know?”

Nicole looked at her lap and shrugged, not having a clear answer in her head. She reminisced over all the little moments that should have signalled it for her but never did. It was too complicated of a question to have a clear, pinpoint answer. She furrowed her eyebrows, “I don’t know.” She shook her head, “There wasn’t ever one moment where I knew, but I really liked Violet from the Incredibles to the point where I should have known something was up.” She chuckled lightly before she looked back up at Waverly, “How did you know?”

Waverly thought back on the moment she first felt something different in her. She actually smiled thinking about it and how she wished for those innocent moments back. “My sister and I used to watch  _ Pretty Little Liars _ together every week.” 

Nicole smiled; she knew where the story was headed. She knew what moment Waverly was going to bring up, and she knew the exact feeling that Waverly felt in that moment.

“When Emily and Maya dated, that’s when I realized I might like girls,” She laughed lightly, “I was never exposed to that before, so I asked my sister, Wynonna, if girls could actually like girls. And she replied with, ‘Girls can do whatever the hell they want.’” Waverly smiled again, “Then, being the encouraging sister that she is, she grabbed my shoulders and told me I could do whatever the hell I want, too. That’s when I knew. Kind of. Oh, and I like boys, too.”

“So you’re bisexual?” Nicole asked.

Waverly furrowed her eyebrows, “There’s a word for it?”

Nicole finally laughed, and Waverly laughed with her. The nerves they previously had started washing away, leaving with the secrets they started to share with one another. Nicole hadn’t smiled so wide in a while, “There’s a lot of words for a lot of things.”

“How do you know so much?” Waverly finally pulled her legs from her chest and sat cross-legged on the bed, never having been exposed to so much before. She enjoyed finally having someone to talk to about all the things she’d kept inside for the past few years.

“I have spent the past fourteen years sneaking around behind my parents’ backs. The more they tried to shelter me, the more I learned.” Nicole replied. She felt like she could breathe after holding her breath her whole life. She no longer felt like she was sneaking around because she found someone with shared experiences and secrets. She found someone who made her feel normal. She didn’t feel secretive and rebellious anymore, something she’d been running from for a while. Like her parents’ urge to shelter Nicole, though, the more Nicole ran from her secrets and rebellion, the more they followed her. 

Waverly smiled, “Badass. I’ve always wanted to try sneaking around.”

“Really?” Nicole laughed, “But you’re-”

“A goodie-two-shoes, I know,” Waverly playfully rolled her eyes, “But I guess part of the reason I disliked you was because maybe I envied you a little bit.” She shook her head, “So cliche, I know.”

“Very cliche, but likewise. I admit I envied that everyone loved you and that you’re so perfect all the time.” Nicole sighed. She took this as the moment where her and Waverly began to finally loosen up and give each other a chance. Nicole knew that this may not matter in a few years, but right now it was the thing that mattered most to her. She hoped she’d remember this and Waverly forever. 

Waverly scrunched her face up and shook her head, “No, I’m definitely not perfect.”

“Sure.” Nicole scoffed, another few moments of silence drifting by. She absorbed the comfortability and stood up, holding her hand out to Waverly, “Can we consider this a truce?”

Waverly stood up and grabbed Nicole’s hand, “I think we have to. We know a bit too much about each other now.” She looked down at their hands as they shook them, smiling at the innocent touch. Nicole thought the same. 

“Guess you’re right,” Nicole chuckled, suddenly second-guessing her handshake. She became worried that it was too tight or too loose, then hoping her hand wasn’t clammy, or too warm, or too cold. Because Waverly’s hand felt perfect. 

They let go and Waverly was the first to speak afterwards, “Thank you, Nicole.”

Nicole nodded and looked down, “Thank you, too.”

There was now an awkward silence. A good awkward. A grin wiped across Waverly’s face as she lunged forward and wrapped her arms around Nicole, not satisfied with only expressing her thanks in a handshake and words. She had to let Nicole knew how much she meant it. This conversation flipped her life around and she could feel it. She no longer felt so terrified of herself. 

Nicole was startled at first, but hastily wrapped her arms back around Waverly. She wasn’t squeezing half as tight as Waverly was, but Waverly knew the care and thought was there. She guessed that Nicole wasn’t a hugger (and she was right), but she figured that if Nicole was hugging her back even slightly, it meant something. Something good. Waverly felt safe. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> something good. i really hope yall are liking this fbdbrghbghrgbrh.
> 
> tw: frootwyn  
> ig: haughtart


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You’ve rubbed off on me,” Nicole chuckled, “We’re cleaning up a room as a prank.”
> 
> “And stealing her stuff,” Waverly nudged Nicole’s arm, “Give yourself some credit.”
> 
> Nicole smiled and looked down, “You’re right. I’m still cool.”
> 
> “You’re always cool."

Two days later, everyone had nearly the entire evening in their hotel rooms, which meant Nicole had conjured up a few pranks to play if Waverly would go along. She laid on her stomach on her bed, texting Rosita to see if she wanted to help out.

“You have a guilty look on your face,” Waverly told Nicole as she reorganized her suitcase to prepare for when they’d leave in two days. Nicole was looking at her phone screen with an excitement in her eyes, an excitement Waverly recognized to be the one Nicole had when she’d pull something on someone.

“I’m planning a little something,” Nicole grinned, she set her phone down, “Firstly, I was just going to play some games and race down the hallway. I think we’ve all been deprived of running around. Then I was trying to think of a prank to play on Chrissy. Rosita’s helping me. Wanna join?”

Waverly got up and sat next to Nicole, “Hmm,” She looked up at the ceiling, figuring she should start taking a few risks, “What have you got in mind for Chrissy?”

Nicole smiled and sat up, excited to have Waverly join in something that was so unlike her to join. She started sifting through her texts with Rosita, describing what they had so far in the plan. “So Rosita said she’d text me when Chrissy was in the shower so we have some time to work. I was just planning to take her suitcase, then we clean up the room to where it looks like no one was ever in there in the first place. So it looks like she got out the shower to a whole new room.” Nicole figured it was as innocent as it could get. She wasn’t looking to get in trouble, just to start a bit of trouble with someone who deserved it. 

Waverly laughed, “That sounds awesome. I want in.”

“Really?” Nicole looked up at her newfound friend, surprised at her anticipation. She admired the way Waverly’s face suddenly lit up. She had a different kind of fire in her eyes, and Nicole was a bit in awe, not being able to look away. 

Waverly nodded, “Totally,” She smiled, grabbing Nicole’s hand, “Let’s go start that race now.” She pulled Nicole off the bed and they ran to the hallway, looking around to make sure no teachers were watching. Waverly felt a chilling thrill course through her veins. The thrill of risk. A thrill she’d never known before. She liked it. 

Hand still holding Nicole’s, Waverly pulled her to the start of the hallway, “So we start here, end right where the hallway turns. Good?” She found herself not wanting to let go of Nicole’s hand until she absolutely had to. She liked the feeling of it there, and it filled her with the same thrill of risk. She had no idea when or if someone would see them, but she didn't care. Nicole was her friend, and it didn’t have to be a secret.

“Aye, aye, captain.” Nicole reluctantly dropped her hand from Waverly’s and adjusted her starting position. Both of them were barefoot on the carpeted hallways, wearing matching anklets that Waverly taught Nicole how to make the night before. Waverly said that even if they don’t stay friends after the trip, they could look at the anklet to at least know that they weren’t alone. Both bracelets were made up of rainbow string, but Nicole added in an extra black string while Waverly added in an extra white string.

Waverly felt the cool air hit her hand as Nicole’s hand was no longer in hers. She curled it into a fist to make up for the lack of warmth before unclenching it and getting in position to run. “Ready?” She asked, suddenly realizing she was blushing from the contact. She shook her head quickly, not knowing what had come over her just then.

Nicole nodded, “Set, go!” 

The two of them took off, both in innocent fits of laughter as they sprinted down the hallway, hoping not to get caught as they did so. Nicole liked to run, though she wasn’t expressive about it. In order to get away from her parents for a little bit, she’d run around the neighborhood and imagine that if she ran faster her problems would eventually wipe away. She tried to run from herself, but now in the hotel hallway she felt like she was finally running for a goal instead of from a situation. She may not know what the goal was, but she was running and she felt free. 

Waverly was surprisingly fast, but not as fast as Nicole. She trailed behind just by a few steps, but it was all in good fun. She was satisfied in at least being able to keep up with Nicole for the most part. 

“I win,” Nicole slowed herself down as they reached the end, out of breath but a smile still on her face. She leaned against the wall, laughing with Waverly over everything and nothing at all. 

Waverly walked up to Nicole and stood face to face with her, merely inches away. She pressed her against the wall, her hands on Nicole’s shoulders, “You think you’re so cool, huh?” She teased, “I’m going to crush you when we race back.”

“Oh,” Nicole laughed with a sly smile on her face, “I’m sure that’s true.”

“It is,” Waverly stood her ground even if she knew she wouldn’t be able to outrun Nicole. It was still fun to pretend like there was a challenge there, and to have an excuse to be close to Nicole. Ever since their ‘truce,’ Waverly became infatuated with the Nicole she never knew before. It was like they were entirely new people when in reality, they were just who they were supposed to be. They were real with one another with no more secrets to hide. The newer, more authentic versions of themselves that they were allowed to be around each other presented them both with a whole new person. Waverly wanted to be close with this new Nicole, and she wanted to know more about her. She wanted to make the most of the friendship they were able to spark.

Nicole grinned at Waverly, not even bothering to try to move from the position she was in. She stayed in the quiet between them, not minding the closeness. The sounds of them recovering from being out of breath was the only sound on the entire floor. It was just them.

Waverly’s smile faded but the fire stayed in her eyes. She took a millisecond glance at Nicole’s lips before darting back up to her eyes. Nicole noticed, but she was guilty of looking at Waverly’s lips, too. They subconsciously inched a bit closer to each other. 

“Hey, can I join?” A classmate walked out of her room, having noticed the two were racing before. 

Waverly jumped off of Nicole at the sound of the door opening, “Sure!” She smiled and directed for them to come over. Nicole was suddenly at loss of breath again as she prepared to race once more. 

 

-

 

Nicole and Waverly crouched on the floor next to the door of Chrissy and Rosita’s room. Waverly had her arm linked with Nicole’s, her excuse being that they needed to make themselves as small as possible. Nicole was about to argue that they were both only 5’2, but she refrained. She didn’t mind the closeness anyway.

“Chrissy takes twenty minute showers,” Waverly whispered, “I’d know after tons of sleepovers.”

“I trust you,” Nicole nodded, “That should give us enough time to work.”

“You take her stuff and run with Rosita, and I’ll clean up.” Waverly looked over at Nicole, their faces close again. Nicole was never usually one for physical contact, but she liked having Waverly close. Waverly showed her a whole new side to intangible closeness, the kind of bond you form with someone that you know will never break even if they aren’t friends forever. No matter what happens, they shared something with each other and they were able to be fully themselves, even just for a few days. 

“You’ve rubbed off on me,” Nicole chuckled, “We’re cleaning up a room as a prank.”

“And stealing her stuff,” Waverly nudged Nicole’s arm, “Give yourself some credit.”

Nicole smiled and looked down, “You’re right. I’m still cool.”

“You’re always cool,” Waverly grinned, “And hey, we’re already ‘sinners,’ right?” She tried to make light of their situation, and she had picked up on Nicole’s attempt to make a joke out of anything. She found that it actually kind of helped.

“Totally,” Nicole recovered from the blush that Waverly’s compliment put on her cheeks. She seemed to not be able to wipe the smile off her face. “And hey,” Nicole carried on the joke, “How would you know you’re bi if you’ve never kissed a girl?” She teased, knowing that she had never kissed one either, or anyone for that matter. 

Waverly broke into a quiet fit of giggles, enjoying that they shared a humor on a subject that no one else could participate in. “Well I’ve never kissed anyone, so I guess I can’t be too sure that I like boys either,” She liked the comfortability that they both had with each other. They both now relied on each other to find strength, which the jokes were giving them. It made them feel more normal and more secure in themselves to know that someone else understood.

Nicole laughed lightly, “Same here.”

There was a moment of silence between them before Waverly thought of another comment to make, “Oh, and are you sure you’re not just going through a phase?”

Nicole shrugged, “I’m actually just trying to rebel. That’s why I put myself through this.” She laughed more when Waverly started to as well. 

“Totally,” Waverly shook her head with a smile, “Can’t wait for this dumb  _ phase _ to be over.”

Nicole nodded, “Agreed.” She looked up as the handle of the door above them twisted, and she prayed that it was Rosita and not Chrissy. Rosita should be giving them the signal any minute now. 

“She’s in,” Rosita poked her head out to look at the two of them, “I waited about two minutes to be sure she didn’t forget anything.” She opened the door a bit wider and Nicole and Waverly walked in, starting to go with what they planned. Nicole stuffed everything into Chrissy’s suitcase before sitting on top and zipping it all up, then waited a few seconds for Rosita to get her stuff in her case. Waverly was making the beds, manipulating the underneath of Chrissy’s sheets as she did so. She folded the sheet under the duvet so that when Chrissy did eventually get in, she wouldn’t be able to straighten her legs. 

“We’ll be right back,” Nicole and Rosita ran out and down the hallway, Nicole fumbling with the room key for a second before she unlocked it and walked in, they put the two suitcases aside and ran back to Rosita’s room, holding back their laughter as they helped Waverly clean up the rest of the way. They all finished within the next five minutes and with about ten minutes to spare. Not willing to risk anything, they ran out quickly and quietly back to Nicole and Waverly’s room. 

“Way to go, girls,” Nicole high-fived the two of them, “And way to go, Earp,” She wrapped her hand around Waverly’s as they high-fived, “I would have never expected you to be so fun.”

“Gee thanks,” Waverly chuckled and laced her fingers with Nicole’s, “I enjoyed living like you for a bit.” She tried not to let herself get lost in Nicole and allow herself once again to believe that it was just them two and no one else. It was easy to feel so close with Nicole to the point where the rest of the world didn’t exist, but someone else was present in the room. 

She let go of Nicole’s hand and plopped down on her bed, once again trying to replace the warmth her hand previously felt Nicole’s. 

Nicole gave her a quick smile before turning back to Rosita, “So.. what’s the plan now?”

Rosita laughed, “Oh my gosh, Haught, you are so out of practice,” She lightly hit Nicole’s arm.

“I’m rubbing off on her,” Waverly grinned proudly, both her and Nicole having had obvious influences on one another. 

Nicole felt a pink rush of heat to her cheeks as she thought of their next move, “Well, Chrissy is going to know it was us. I guess we just wait for her to knock on our door.” She shrugged, “And I think Waverly should do the honors of opening it,” She smiled at her, “She’s your best friend after all.”

“She is  _ not _ my best friend, but I’ll open the door,” Waverly replied with a smirk still on her face. “She’s going to be pissed.”

“Then we’ve done our job,” Nicole plopped down next to Waverly, finding it hard to look away once their eyes met.

 

-

 

Waverly held in her laughter until she shut the door behind Chrissy and Rosita. From there, she doubled over in laughter, “That was awesome!” She ran over to Nicole, who was sat laughing on her bed, “Did you see her face?” She sat next to Nicole.

“Yeah, I saw it,” Nicole was amused by Waverly’s excitement. She felt proud that she was the reason for Waverly’s good mood. It made her feel like there were fireworks in her heart, something she wasn’t even sure worked anymore.

Waverly set both her hands on Nicole’s shoulders, “That. Was. So. Awesome.” She emphasized each word, not able to express her joy enough. She hadn’t felt so much adrenaline and joy in a long time, and she knew this was just the beginning of her fun. She was going to learn from Nicole, and not be so uptight because she knew she was. She wanted to feel this free all the time.

Nicole nodded, “It was pretty awesome.” She was excited, too, but she was too busy admiring how happy Waverly was. 

Silence washed over them again as they sat and smiled at each other, Waverly’s hands still holding onto Nicole’s shoulders. Both of them felt the bit of tension growing, but neither wanted to move. They were too captivated to move, too caught up in their own world. It was still new to each of them, and each second of silence gave them the time to really live in the world in the friendship they created. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> just some fluff to steadily move things along, and because yall deserve it ofc ;)
> 
> ig: jelodraws (i changed my @ again lol)  
> tw: frootwyn


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “That’s a scary thought,” Waverly chuckled, “Growing up and stuff. It’s frightening to think it won’t always be like this.” 
> 
> “Like what?” Nicole asked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> quick tw that there's bullying in this

The day began like any other. Waverly playfully hit Nicole with a pillow a few times to get her up, they pretended to argue over the bathroom even though they were both fine with sharing it to get ready, and breakfast went by smoothly as they sat side by side. It was a new normal for the two of them, but both were being just a little clingier than usual because they knew it was the last full day of the trip. They would leave tomorrow.

Waverly, at the start of the trip, prayed for it to be over as soon as possible, but now she could cry at the thought of having to leave. Nicole showed her what a real friend was like, and she was afraid that she’d no longer have that after the trip ends. She was scared everything would go back to the way it was. That was the last thing she wanted. 

The night before, the two of them sat on the floor in between their beds, facing each other. There was a more serious atmosphere. Waverly had brought up the trip coming to and end. 

“Please don’t let this go to waste,” Waverly spoke, “I know you have awesome friends, but you’re my only awesome friend right now, and I don’t want to lose you after we go back home.”

Nicole shook her head, “You won’t lose me. Ever.”

Waverly smiled softly and stuck out her pinky, “Promise me?”

Nicole nodded and linked her pinky with Waverly’s, “Promise.”

Waverly hadn’t stopped replaying those words since Nicole said them, hoping with all her might that they were true. She knew Nicole wouldn’t lie to her but the redhead now meant more to her than anyone else (besides her sister) and she couldn’t afford to lose her. She was hope.

They were walking along the streets of New York now, making their way back to the hotel. Waverly and Nicole’s hands would brush past each other every now and then as they swung back and forth at their sides. Waverly enjoyed the little touches, and so did Nicole, but Nicole feared that Waverly may get annoyed so she stuck her hands in her pockets. Waverly frowned. 

Desperate for another conversation so Waverly could forget her nerves, she smiled over at Nicole, “I like your new hat. It looks cute on you.”

Nicole’s cheeks were red, and not just because it was cold outside. She smiled and put a hand on her new beanie, “You think?” Her nose scrunched up and her dimple poked in her cheek. 

Waverly couldn’t help but to smile at the sight, “Totally.”

“Well,” Nicole walked with a bit more confidence, “I like your new scarf. It looks cute on you.”

Waverly mimicked Nicole’s previous reaction and scrunched her face in the same way, “You think?”

Nicole laughed, “Totally.” She laughed a bit more once Waverly joined her, thankful for how easy it was to talk to her and laugh with her and not fear what her reaction may be. She was never so open with someone so quickly. With Waverly, she let her guard down and wasn’t so timid, whereas that would take her years to get to that point with someone else. There was something special between them.

Waverly moved to walk a bit closer to Nicole, looking for warmth in the cold weather. She watched their boots hit the pavement as they walked, thinking of something else to say even though the silence between them wasn’t awkward. “Your birthday is coming up, right?” She asked. She knew she was a few months older than Nicole, Waverly having turned fifteen in September. 

Nicole nodded, “January 5th. We’re almost legal to drive.” She couldn’t wait to drive. She could get away from her parents whenever she wanted to.

“That’s a scary thought,” Waverly chuckled, “Growing up and stuff. It’s frightening to think it won’t always be like this.” It’d always been a fear of Waverly’s, growing up. She always felt like everything was moving too fast and everyone would move on without her. 

“Like what?” Nicole asked, having a bit of the same fear.

“Like…” Waverly looked up at the pink-tinted clouds in the evening sky, “Like I know it clearly isn’t easy now. We have to deal with growing up and changing and all these stupid crazy things, but we don’t have any real responsibilities now, you know? No one expects much from us because we’re still kids. When we grow up, there’s so much we have to do and we can no longer just live and make stupid mistakes.”

Nicole nodded along, “You’re right.” She now felt the uneasiness of how it won’t always be like this forever, “But if we constantly dwell on the fear of growing up, then we’ll miss the present days of being young.” She said that for not only Waverly, but for herself, too. She remembered talking to her sister about how she was scared for her to go to college and scared for herself to enter high school. Her sister told her to live presently and things will fall into place. She would repeat that every time she needed it. Live presently and things will fall into place.

Waverly had never thought about it like that, having always led herself by emotions rather than logic. She took a moment to think over Nicole’s words. “That’s a really good way to put it.”

“It’s a lot more fun to pretend you have nothing to worry about in the future.” Nicole laughed lightly, “We don’t have adult responsibilities now, so we should live now without thinking of them.”

“Good advice.” Waverly replied.

“So take all your risks and do whatever you want now. And make all the stupid mistakes you want because those are pretty fun. And, hey, stupid mistakes could turn out to be pretty good in the end. I made a stupid mistake in playing a prank on Lucado, and ended up getting roomed with you, which I think is a pretty good thing in the end.”

“Yeah,” Waverly smiled, she didn’t think being roomed with Nicole would do anything but harm, but it gave her the best time she’s ever had. She didn’t even think about the fact that Nicole had mindlessly straightened up, but that’s not what Waverly was worried about. Waverly actually became friends with her, and she turned out to be the greatest friend Waverly’s ever had. “I think that’s a pretty good thing, too.”

 

-

 

Not missing a single day, Chrissy had given Nicole hell the entire trip. Just when she thought she was getting better at ignoring it, Nicole was mistaken. She couldn’t go one bite of dinner without hearing her name or seeing people staring at her. After hosting a race in the hotel hallways the night before, she’d earned a few people back on her side, but not many. People still looked at her like a freak. 

“She shouldn’t even be allowed at school. Or even in the girls’ bathroom, you know?” Chrissy said, purposefully having had placed herself at the table next to Nicole, Waverly, and Rosita’s so that she knew Nicole would hear her. 

Nicole huffed, then feeling Waverly’s hand atop her own on the seat, “Do you have anything else to talk about or is your life just  _ that _ disinteresting?” She allowed herself to laugh, “Seriously,  _ you _ must be the one who likes  _ me _ , since you can’t seem to stop talking about me.”

“No one would ever like you,” Chrissy rolled her eyes, “You’re nothing.”

“That’s not true,” Nicole stood up, slipping her hand from underneath Waverly’s.

Chrissy stood up, too, “We’re doing this again?” She shoved Nicole’s shoulders. “Give up already. No one wants you here.”

Nicole stumbled back, but stayed on her feet. Her cheeks turned red with anger, “That’s not true.” She repeated. She once again felt her words get trapped in her throat. She’d think after hearing the same thing over and over she’d be immune to the pain of it, but there was no way to brush off getting told that you don’t matter. It hurt her every time, and it got harder and harder to stand up for herself time and time again. 

Chrissy shoved Nicole again, the redhead now up against a wall with her classmate towering over her. She looked up and tried to fight the tears brimming her eyes, but she was scared. She was terrified, and now everyone was going to know, and Chrissy was going to make an absolute fool out of her. She could faintly hear Waverly and Rosita telling Chrissy to stop, but all the sounds in the room were blurring together. 

“Just admit it,” Chrissy smiled, “Admit that you’re weak and that no one likes you. You and your stupid hat,” She chuckled and flicked Nicole’s beanie, “Maybe then I’ll leave you alone.”

Nicole readjusted her beanie, the one that she found herself attached to since Waverly had complimented it. She shook her head and got out the only three words she could manage, “That’s not true.” Tears rolled down her cheeks, but she wasn’t going to acknowledge them. 

“Say it!” Chrissy shouted, her volume making Nicole’s ears ring, “You’re weak and no one likes you, and no one wants you here. Say it.”

Nicole kept shaking her head, “That’s not true!”

“Coward!” Chrissy yelled, “You know it’s true, otherwise someone would be up here not letting this happen. But look, no one cares.”

It was like Nicole couldn’t stop shaking her head. The tears kept pouring and she brought her hands over her ears, “That’s not true. That’s not true,” She kept repeating it as she pressed her hands hard enough to her ears to crush her skull. “That’s not true, that’s not true, that’s not true.” No other words could come out of her mouth and she couldn’t stop herself from saying them. Chrissy kept taunting, and there was no other way for Nicole to block out the sound. She tried to be a little louder, “That’s not true, that’s not true!” She could feel everyone staring at her. She was no longer invincible and tough. She really was a coward now. She was weak, and everyone knew it now. She felt like an idiot. A weak, pointless idiot.

“Get off of her!” Waverly gathered all the force she could and shoved Chrissy a few feet away, then standing in front of Nicole, protecting her as much as she could. Nicole slowly took her hands off her ears and brought them to a few strands of hair, pulling at them to ease the anxiety.

“Waverly, it’s fine,” Nicole sniffled, “Go sit down, I don’t want you to get hurt.”

“Shh,” Waverly responded, then watching a teacher come their way. 

“What’s going on here?” It was Ms. Kate: the teacher who put Waverly in charge of keeping Nicole out of trouble. The teacher Waverly now realized she failed. 

“Waverly pushed me!” Chrissy said dramatically, standing up off the ground.

“Waverly,” Ms. Kate turned to her, disappointed, “Is that true?”

Waverly was close to denying it. She could easily blame Nicole because everyone would believe that, but that would be the worst thing she could do. She pushed Chrissy, and she deserved it. She wasn’t going to lie about something she was proud of herself for doing. “Yes. It’s true.”

“Nicole,” Ms. Kate looked behind Waverly, “That’s true?”

Nicole nodded, keeping herself quiet. She knew it was better to say nothing in this moment. Then she knew she couldn’t ruin anything else. 

“All of you go to your rooms. I’ll be talking with you when we get back at school.” The teacher directed for them all to go upstairs, which Waverly and Nicole followed with no reluctance. They wanted to get away from everything. It was all too much.

Rushing into the room, Nicole allowed her cries to be audible, as if she had any control over their sound anyway. She tore the beanie off her head and threw it to the ground in anger, then running her hands through her hair and tugging at the roots.

“Nicole, hey, calm down,” Waverly said softly, putting her hand on Nicole’s shoulder. 

“Shut up!” Nicole jerked away from Waverly, backing towards the wall, “Don’t talk to me.” She needed away from everyone. She knew she was thankful that Waverly stepped in, but she felt weak for letting someone help her. It clarified for her that she really was a coward.

“I was just trying to help.” Waverly kept her distance from Nicole, not wanting to anger her anymore.

“Well, you weren’t helping much anyway, so stop.” Nicole usually spoke through logic rather than emotion, but no logic could explain why everything always toppled down on her. No logic could explain what she did to deserve to be treated like she was treated. Logic was a lie.

“Hey,” Waverly felt herself getting angry, “If it weren’t for me, Chrissy would have beaten you up.” She said seriously, “So don’t say I didn’t help.”

“I get it!” Nicole kept pulling at her hair, “I’m a coward, I know!”

“That’s not what I’m saying.” Waverly raised her voice to match Nicole’s, both of them on the route to shouting at one another, but not quite there yet.

“What were you trying to say then, huh?” Nicole asked angrily, “That I can’t do anything on my own? That I should have just let Chrissy beat me up? That I should have never tried being your friend in the first place?”

“That’s not what I’m saying!” Waverly shouted now, “I was trying to keep you from getting hurt any more! What does being my friend have to do with that?”

Nicole shook her head, “I don’t know! I don’t know what to do anymore!” She shouted now, too, “But I feel even shitter if that’s even possible. I’m weak, and no one wants me here, and no one likes me, and I’m a coward, and you can’t lie and tell me I’m not any of those things because you made me look like a coward in front of everyone. You think I’m a coward.”

“I don’t think you’re a coward.” Waverly said through a clenched jaw. 

“Then why do you treat me like one? Like I’m some sort of toddler who doesn’t know right from wrong.” Nicole’s hands made their way back to tugging at her hair as she paced the room, “You think you’re so superior, don’t you? Just because you get to live a lovely closeted life while I’m out getting taunted for what people don’t even know is true! You’re just basking in it, aren’t you?”

“I’m not basking in anything!” Waverly’s eyes followed Nicole around the room, “It pains me to see you out there like that, you know that, right? It breaks my heart into pieces that you have to go through that, when I’m just like you.” 

“You aren’t just like me!” Nicole’s voice only got louder, “You’ll never be like me. You’ll never know what it’s like, so stop pretending like you do.”

Waverly huffed, “Fine. Sorry, but-”

Nicole shook her head, “Whatever. I’m going shower.” She started walking towards the bathroom.

“Hey, don’t walk away from me.” Waverly chased after her, and grabbed her before she could go any further. They stood in the doorway of the bathroom, Nicole’s tears having dried after getting so angry, but her cheeks and nose still red with infuriation. 

“What?” Nicole folded her arms, still shouting, “Were you going to tell me you’re only my friend out of pity?”

“Snap out of it, Nicole!” Waverly raised her voice again, “I’m your friend because you’re cool and funny, and a hell of a lot of fun. And- and,” She felt herself getting worked up even more, “Because I  _ like _ you!” She clenched her mouth shut when she realized what she said. She hadn’t even admitted to herself that she liked Nicole, but impulsivity reveals all. She spoke in the moment. She lived in the present. She made a stupid mistake. 

“You what?” Nicole questioned, “You-” She raised her voice again, “You  _ like _ me?”

“Shh!” Waverly’s hands were on Nicole’s shoulders, panic evident on her face. 

Nicole was quiet, and after a round of both of them screaming at each other, they finally had silence. There was only the sound of the nerves evident in their breathing. 

Waverly didn’t take her eyes off of Nicole’s, “Are you going to say anything?”

Nicole’s eyes spoke for her. Nicole liked Waverly, too. It was a stupid kind of liking her, but she liked her, and Waverly saying it out loud is what made it real for Nicole, too. “Are  _ you _ going to say anything?” Nicole asked.

Waverly shook her head, the entire atmosphere having shifted in just a few words. Nicole no longer seemed angry and overwhelmed. She seemed like she was finally in the moment instead of everywhere else but the moment.

Waverly’s eyes scanned Nicole’s face in the next few seconds of silence. “Can I just… do something?”

Nicole knew what she was going to do. She felt all the nerves gather up in her throat, but she nodded. 

Waverly’s hands left Nicole’s shoulders and held her face, and she slowly and hesitantly pressed her lips to Nicole’s. She hadn’t a clue in the world how to kiss, and neither did Nicole, but Nicole kissed back to the best of her ability. 

The day ended unlike any other. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the late update!! i rlly hope this isnt as sucky as i think lol
> 
> tw: frootwyn  
> ig: jelodraws


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “No,” Nicole shook her head, biting her lip, “I like like her.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry if theres any typos or mistakes. i wanted to get this up asap and didnt proofread it as many times as i usually do.

Nicole and Waverly hadn’t spoken to one another since the night before. They’d stolen glances at each other, but didn’t speak. They packed their bags in dreadful silence and left the hotel in the consistent dreadful silence drowned in the cacophony of the chatter of everyone else. 

Waverly thought about what she did, where all the feelings inside her came from. She knew something changed in her the night her and Nicole told each other they both liked girls. She knew that conversation opened new doors for her, but it also opened long-term repressed feelings. Feelings she knew she’d always had for Nicole, even before they started speaking as friends. Maybe that was another reason Waverly was so angry at her all the time. 

Nicole realized the same, that she never hated Waverly because she had unacknowledged feelings for her. It was hard to admit that to herself afterwards, but after everything her and Waverly went through the past four days of the trip, the feelings she had were right in front of her, dying to be acknowledged. Though she found it hard to talk to Waverly now after what happened, she secretly craved more. She craved to hold her hand again, and to talk and laugh with her again, and to kiss her again. Everything Nicole learned about kissing from movies and books was nothing compared to how it felt when it was with a girl. A girl she liked. Waverly. 

A teacher pulled Nicole aside once everyone got to the airport. A few people in the class ‘Ooh’ed, assuming Nicole was in trouble. Ms. Kate bent down to Nicole’s height, away from the crowd of students. 

“What really happened with Chrissy? It’s really unlike Waverly to lash out on someone-”

“And you think I had something to do with it.” Nicole looked down at her feet, frowning at the thought of her own reputation. She suddenly wanted to cry and pull her hair all over again.

“No, no,” Ms. Kate put her hands on Nicole’s shoulders as she started to wipe the tears in her eyes, “Not at all. I trust you, Nicole.”

“Chrissy was teasing me, so Waverly stood up for me.” Nicole fought the urge to look over at Waverly. Waverly, who sacrificed her good-girl image to shove Chrissy out the way to save Nicole from any more taunting. 

“Teasing you how?” 

Nicole stayed silent, too ashamed of herself and what she was getting teased for. She started wiping more tears away with the sleeves of her hoodie. Waverly watched, wishing she could run over to Nicole, give her a hug, and never let her go. 

“You can tell me, Nicole. You want Chrissy to stop, right?”

Nicole nodded, sniffling almost uncontrollably. 

“So, can you tell me what she’s been doing?”

“She started a rumor that I was, umm,” Nicole wanted to run away and never have to speak of what Chrissy said to her. She was ashamed beyond words. “She started a rumor that I was gay. And she’s been taunting me for weeks, but it got kind of bad on the trip.” She cried harder, a lump crawling it’s way up her throat. She’d had enough of the rollercoaster of the trip, but it seemed impossible to stop. She kept getting thrown for loops, and she wasn’t sure how many more she could take before she broke, if this wasn’t already considered breaking. 

Mss. Kate nodded, understanding. “Okay, she’s not going to get away with that. Can you tell me why Waverly pushed her then?”

“Umm,” Nicole heard her heart beating in her ears, “Chrissy kind of shoved me, so I was on the wall and I couldn’t move. And Waverly kept telling her to stop taunting me, but she wouldn’t, so Waverly pushed her. She kind of saved me.” Nicole calmed her own cries down, “And Waverly and I became friends, so she was just standing up for a friend. Please don’t punish her. She did the right thing.”

Ms. Kate nodded, “And you said she tried telling her to stop?”

“Yes,” Nicole finally looked up, “Waverly didn’t do anything wrong. You can’t punish her, okay? If she didn’t step in, I probably would’ve gotten beaten up.”

“I hear you. And I’m sorry it took me so long to step in. I’m going to talk to Waverly now, okay?” 

Nicole nodded, again resisting the urge to look at Waverly. She walked back to the seat she was sitting in and watched as Waverly made her way to the teacher, hopefully not getting any consequences for what she did. Nicole was angry at her at first, but Waverly did a brave thing. She did that brave thing to save Nicole, and Nicole couldn’t wait for when they talked again so that she could thank her for that.

Waverly was a bit more stable than Nicole, but she, too, wished she could just curl up and cry. She couldn’t wait to be home so she could do just that. Ms. Kate asked Waverly essentially the same questions as she did Nicole. 

“I wouldn’t have gotten physical if I didn’t try to stop her verbally already. She had Nicole pinned against the wall. She was trying to get Nicole to say that she was weak and that nobody wanted her here. I couldn’t listen to that. Nicole is my friend, and even if she wasn’t, nobody deserves that, you know? So I don’t care what consequences you give me. I did what was right.” Waverly stood her ground. There was no chance in hell she’d back away from what she did. She didn’t care what her punishment was as long as justice was served to Nicole. Her friend.

“You didn’t think to come get me first?”

“I guess not, and I’m sorry about that, but if you saw and you heard what was happening, you’d push Chrissy, too.”

“I understand. Thank you for standing up for Nicole in the long run. That was really nice of you to do, and I can tell she could use a friend like you.”

Waverly looked longingly at Nicole for a second, “Yeah. No problem.” After being dismissed, she walked back to her seat. A part of her wished she never kissed Nicole, even though she wanted to do it again. She was afraid she ruined the friendship she spoke about previously. Another part of her knew that it had to have meant something to Nicole for it to calm her so quickly after Waverly’s feelings were out in the open. That small part of Waverly was what gave her hope that they’d speak again. 

The plane was called and they went through the long process of boarding, then settling in their seats. Waverly and Nicole were sat together again, but then tension could be cut with a knife. They didn’t look at each other, or say anything, the just sat. Nicole put in her earphones and looked out the window, keeping the volume at a reasonable level this time. She had no reason to tick Waverly off, especially now. Especially when she felt like she may have ruined everything after she was the one to not speak to Waverly after they kissed. 

She tried to clear her head from that and focus on just getting home. She pulled out the comic book she’d been reading the entire trip and picked up where she left off. The heroes in the book were two girls who fell in love, and their supernames even related. Nicole had to hide ‘The Adventures of Ultrared and Infraviolet’ from her parents by stuffing it in her pillowcase each night, but it still gave her hope. And it would soon give her the courage to talk to Waverly again in time. 

They’d been in the air for about an hour when Waverly caught glance of Nicole’s hand on the seat, the other hand holding her book. Nerves crawling through Waverly’s veins, she inched her hand over. She didn’t touch Nicole’s just yet.

Nicole looked down and saw Waverly’s hand moving closer. She slowly and hesitantly lifted her pinky, letting Waverly’s slide under hers. They linked pinkies just like they had two nights prior when they promised to never leave the other. Nicole meant it all again now. Even though they were sitting in silence, they felt the promise again, and all nerves were temporarily settled. 

They didn’t look at each other, but they felt each other there, and that was all that mattered. 

 

-

 

Upon arriving back home, everyone’s parents were already there to pick everyone up. Nicole got on the tips of her toes and looked around, but she didn’t see her parents in sight. They must have just been running late. Waverly immediately found her sister and aunt and ran to them, happy to have the security of her family again. Nicole watched her and admired how happy she looked, wishing she had the same thing at home. She got lost in her admirance and wasn’t able to look away fast enough when Waverly looked her way with a sorry smile. Nicole returned the soft smile and small wave that Waverly sent her way before she turned away and left. Nicole wondered if she’d ever have another moment with Waverly again. 

“Nicole?” A voice called out the the redhead and she looked up, catching the eye of her sister. A huge smile wiped over her face and she sprinted toward the only other person besides Waverly who could put such a smile on her face. She wrapped her sister in a tight hug, needing a trusting older sister now more than ever. 

“Hello to you, too, kiddo,” Her sister laughed, hugging her back. “C’mon, we can get some hot chocolate on the way home.” She grabbed Nicole’s hand as they started to walk out the airport, stopping at a Starbucks on the way out. 

“How was the trip?” Rylie, Nicole’s sister, asked. 

“Well, I got roomed with Waverly.” Nicole answered as they walked back to the car, “I told you about her, right?”

“I know all about her,” Rylie replied, “That must have been hell.” She always looked out for her younger sister, even if Nicole had never described Waverly as the mean type.

“It wasn’t,” Nicole shook her head as they got into the car and started to drive off, “It was fun. We actually became friends,” She smiled, “And she defended me when someone was teasing me, and turns out she’s really funny and interesting.” She laughed happily, “I actually had a pretty good time minus a few things.”

“Well I’m glad, but who was teasing you? I’ll give them a piece of my mind.”

“No one. It doesn’t matter,” Nicole took a sip of her hot chocolate, “But I did think Waverly would be hell, but she’s pretty cool.” She smiled as she looked out the window. “Can I tell you something?” Her smile faded as she looked over at her sister, thinking of all the things she’d get to say if this went well. She had to be serious now, though. 

“Of course. Anything.” Rylie was sincere, always.

Nicole took a breath, then another and one more after that. She couldn’t turn back now, otherwise Rylie would know something was up. She reached for a strand of her hair again, “I…  _ like _ Waverly.”

Rylie furrowed her eyebrows, “Well, she’s your friend.”

“No,” Nicole shook her head, biting her lip, “I  _ like like _ her.”

Rylie realized what Nicole was trying to say and broke into a smile. She was worried from time to time about Nicole never talking about her feelings and this was why. She was proud and happy of Nicole, though, and she made a mental note to herself to do anything she could to protect her sister from everything that would come her way because of this. “Does she like you back?”

Nicole smiled and nodded, “Yeah, she does.”

 

-

 

Waverly sat with her older sister, Wynonna, on the couch after their aunt had gone to sleep. It was midnight, and they were rekindling a tradition of watching a movie of their choice at midnight once a month. Wynonna said that their family traditions were never normal, so they might as well keep it going. Waverly didn’t argue. 

“So you were roomed with Haught, huh?” Wynonna grabbed a handful of popcorn, “Did she ruin your life?” 

Waverly shook her head, smiling down at the mug of hot chocolate sh held in her hands, “No, she’s actually pretty awesome. We played a prank together on Chrissy, who turns out is a huge B-word. I taught her how to make a friendship bracelet, and it was actually a lot of fun. She’s really cool.”

Wynonna looked confusedly at her sister, “Is this the same Nicole who you claimed was the actual spawn of Satan? Or is it a different redhead?” 

“It’s the same Nicole. I was wrong about her, Wyn. She’s so cool. We’re friends now, actually. I didn’t really have a reason to dislike her in the first place,” Waverly shrugged and took a sip of her drink, taking a glance at  _ Legally Blonde _ on the television. 

“So, are you going to go from talking my ear off about how horrible she is to talking my ear off about how awesome she is?” Wynonna asked, “Because I was looking to fight this kid soon.”

“No, don’t fight her,” Waverly shook her head, “I know I have a totally different opinion of her now, but I got to know her, and talk with her, and joke with her, and she’s the opposite of the spawn of Satan. She just knows how to have fun, and I was too uptight to see that.”

“You? Uptight?” Wynonna teased, knowing she’s told her sister to let loose on more than one occasion.

Waverly laughed, “Yeah, yeah, I know. But I actually think you might like Nicole.”

“Don’t expect me to be all buddy-buddy with her after you’ve made her out to be a monster for the past three years or so.” Wynonna warned.

“I know, and I feel awful about everything I said about her because it’s all so untrue,” She face palmed herself, wishing she could put words back in her mouth, “Something changed once I got to know her.”

“Well, I’m glad you had a good time.” Wynonna ruffled Waverly’s hair and looked back at the screen, taking up another handful of popcorn.

Waverly deciphered whether or not she should tell Wynonna what her true feelings are about Nicole. She became a lot more secure in herself ever since Nicole encouraged her and gave her some solid advice, and she knew Wynonna wouldn’t react poorly. There was still that fear that maybe she would, though. That maybe she would accept her, but would act differently towards her. That’s what scared her. 

“Wynonna, can I tell you something?” She asked, once again leading her decisions based on emotion. She set her mug down and readjusted the blanket over her, just an excuse to avoid eye contact.

“Of course,” Wynonna replied, “Did things get wild in New York?” She joked, snickering to herself.

Waverly shook her head, though that action was a half-lie since she  _ did _ kiss Nicole. She wasn’t sure if that’s what Wynonna would consider ‘wild,’ though. “No, not that.” She managed a light chuckle as she started to nervously twist her ring around her finger. “I, umm,” She pulled the ring off and put it back on a few times, “I  _ like _ Nicole. Like  _ like like _ her.” She felt a weight fly off her shoulders but a new weight of fear make itself present on her chest. She trusted Wynonna, though, and she trusted her to not hate her.

Wynonna smiled and laughed lightly, “I knew Emily was your favorite on  _ Pretty Little Liars _ for a reason.” She looked over at her sister, “Now come here,” She opened her arms and wrapped Waverly in a hug. She had her suspicions over the years, but was proud, ultimately, of Waverly for telling her. It was brave of her to do. “So things  _ did _ get wild in New York?” She asked.

Waverly laughed, “No, Wynonna.” She squeezed her sister tighter, always appreciating her wit, something that made her laugh even in the darkest and most serious of moments. 

“So does she like you back?” Wynonna asked. She wanted the best for her sister, and she didn’t know if Nicole was it, but if Waverly was happy, Nicole had to have done something right. 

Waverly nodded, “Yeah,” A soft smile grew on her face, “I think so.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the lack of consistency in my updates! ive been really busy. also peep the holding out for a hero cameo ;)
> 
> tw: frootwyn  
> ig: jelodraws

**Author's Note:**

> hi everyone :) this is my second fic, the first being holding out for a hero. i really hope yall like this one as much as the last one!
> 
> tw: frootwyn  
> ig: haughtart


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